Summer's End
by 554Laura
Summary: Part of the Bonesology Summer fan fiction challenge. Random short stories and drabbles from a list of prompts about Summer. I don't own Bones or it's characters.
1. Chapter 1 School's Out

_A/N: this chapter is set about eight years in the future._

Booth pulled his SUV up in front of Roosevelt Middle School right before the dismissal bell. He had a few minutes to wait, so he tuned the Pandora stream to his favorite classic rock station, which featured oldies from the seventies and eighties. Turning up the volume several notches, he tapped his fingers on the steering wheel as he bobbed his head to one of his favorites as he waited for Christine.

"Oh, hi, Honey!", he said as his daughter opened the door to the SUV. "Well, how was the last day of eighth grade? Do you feel any different? Because after today you're officially a high school student."

Christine climbed into the car, smiling at her father until she heard the music that was playing. "Oh, my God, Daddy. What are you listening to?"

"Hey, this is the good stuff from the seventies. They put together a set of songs for the last day of school. This is Alice Cooper. Listen…"

The radio blared heavy metal music as a raspy male voice sang over it. "School's out for summer. School's out forever…"

Wrinkling her nose in disdain, Christine rolled her eyes at her father. "Really, Daddy?"

"Hey, it's a great song. No more teachers, no more books, no more teacher's dirty looks…" Booth sang along loudly with the radio as he pulled away from the curb. "Alice Cooper is legendary, Christine. Just listening to him on the radio gives you a sense of rock and roll history, doesn't it?"

Christine looked at Booth as if he was crazy. "This man is a legend?"

"Well, actually, Alice Cooper is a band, but they were really important in the heavy metal genre during the seventies. Oh, listen...here's Pink Floyd. We don't need no education. We don't need no thought control…" Booth sang the lyrics with gusto. "Too bad you didn't get out to the car sooner. You missed Smokin' in the Boys Room."

Christine nodded in amusement. "Yeah...my loss, I'm sure. So have they played Van Halen's Hot for Teacher yet?"

Booth turned a narrowed eye toward his daughter. "How do you know about that one?"

"C'mon, Dad. I watch youtube. I've seen the videos with the boys lusting after their cute teacher." Grinning at her father's shocked expression, Christine got out her phone to check her messages.

"Well, that's not really Van Halen's best song…." Booth was beginning to feel a bit uncomfortable as he thought of his little girl watching that video.

"It says here, Dad, that the lead singer of Alice Cooper used to bite the heads off chickens and drink their blood. Now I can understand why you think the band was so important to the genre." Christine showed him the webpage she had pulled up on her phone.

"They may have done crazy stuff on stage, but that doesn't mean their songs weren't good. C'mon, Christine. You can't tell me that you don't wanna sing those lyrics….no more teachers, no more books…" Booth grinned at his daughter. "I know you're glad school's out for the summer no matter what sort of garbage you tell your mother about how much you miss learning stuff."

Christine smiled sadly as she looked out the car window. "I'm going to miss my friends, Daddy. I mean, we're going on a trip to the Grand Canyon for two weeks, and then they'll be on trips, and then there's summer camp…"

Booth chuckled. "By 'they' I assume you mean Kyle. Don't worry, honey. He won't forget you over the summer. I'm sure you'll hear from him a lot over the next few months."

"Do you really think so, Daddy?" Christine's lip was quivering as she turned to her father. "I'm going to miss him so much."

"Of course I do, Sweetheart. Kyle's a smart kid. He knows you're too special to give up just because it's summer vacation, okay? Booth chuckled to himself. _Kyle's also smart enough to know I won't be happy if he breaks my daughter's heart!_ "So no more tears, okay? We're gonna have fun all summer, and then you'll be in high school and have fun there, too."

Christine sniffled as she brushed away a tear. "Okay. Thanks, Daddy."

"Any time, Sweetheart. Oh, listen. It's the BeeGees! Ah, ah, ah, ah stayin' alive, stayin' alive..."

Smiling as her father got down to the disco beat while he drove, Christine smiled to herself. They'd be having fun all summer long...


	2. Chapter 2 Shopping for Bathing Suits

_A/N: this chapter is set in season 5..._

"Angela, I don't think this is a good idea." Brennan peeked around the door of the fitting room, grimacing at her friend. "This bathing suit doesn't fit correctly. Do they have it in a larger size?"

"Nuh uh. No way. Not until I see what that one looks like on you. Step out here and let me see." Angela cast a critical eye at her friend before she flashed a big smile. "Nope. That's the right size. It's a Brazilian cut bikini. That's how it's supposed to fit...covering just the essentials and leaving almost nothing to the imagination."

"I don't believe you. How could anyone possibly swim in this bathing suit?" Brennan tried to tug on the bikini bottom to get it to cover more territory. "And look at the price! Two hundred dollars for less fabric than that of my normal underclothes."

"It's a designer original! You're not supposed to swim in it. It's strictly for looks...and believe me, you're gonna get some looks." Angela tilted her head and twirled her finger. "Turn around. Yep. Trust me, Sweetie. It looks good. That bright blue is really a good color on you, too."

"I'm just not sure." Pulling on the straps of the top, Brennan fretted about the way it fit. "I really need a suit with more support than this, Angela. It feels like my breasts are going to bounce out of this top every time I move."

"Yeah, well, I don't usually have that problem, Brennan, so I can't relate." Angela smiled to herself. She thought she knew how to convince her friend to take the plunge on the teeny bikini. "Listen, Bren, I think we need a refresher course in anthropology here."

Brennan grinned at Angela as she tried once again to adjust the bikini top. "You're going to give me an anthropology lesson. Okay…"

"Why do people wear clothes, Brennan?" Angela crossed her arms over her chest. "What does anthropology tell us?"

Brennan nodded as she pondered the question. "To keep warm…"

"It's summer." Angela tapped her foot impatiently.

"To establish and maintain social mores, status and one's position in a society's hierarchy."

"You have an established position and status in our society. Another reason?" Angela watched as a smile began to spread across Brennan's face.

"To showcase our positive attributes to the opposite sex?"

"If you mean to show the world that you have a rockin' hot figure, then Bingo! This suit shows off your figure quite nicely." Angela shrugged. "I think most members of the opposite sex would definitely notice your positive attributes if you were to wear that swimsuit to the pool."

"But I'd be afraid to move. And with this thin knit fabric, it's not very practical to wear in the water, either." Brennan pulled on the bottom again and shook her head. "I'm going to go try on the suit I picked out."

"Fine." Angela sighed with annoyance. "I'm just trying to help, Brennan…" Angela browsed through more swimsuits as she waited for her friend to change.

"Well, what do you think?" Brennan came out of the dressing room and stood before Angela. "I think it fits well, and it's more practical than the previous one."

The strapless turquoise bathing suit was cut high over the thighs, emphasizing the length of Brennan's legs. The gathered band across the top was held in place with a wide ribbon that tied in the front. Angela had to admit that the smooth glossy fabric skimmed over Brennan's body well, accentuating every curve. "I guess it's okay. Do you like it?"

Glancing at herself in the mirror, Brennan nodded. "I think so."

Sensing an opening, Angela sat back in her chair and asked the most important question. "Will this suit knock Booth's socks off when you wear it to the pool?"

"Angela!" Brennan was scandalized.

"Oh, c'mon, Brennan...be honest. We both know that whether or not Booth might like how you look in a certain swimsuit will be what finally makes you choose one, right?" Angela cocked an eyebrow at her friend as she reluctantly nodded in agreement. "Okay, now that we've settled that, I found another one for you to try." The two piece suit was navy blue with white polka dots. "This is called a modified bikini. It offers a bit more coverage than that Brazilian cut bikini you tried on earlier. See...the bra part has a bit more shaping and will probably feel more secure, and the bottoms are cut to be low, but not dangerously so. Go try it on…"

A few minutes later, Brennan came out of the dressing room wearing a happy smile. "I love it. What do you think?" She smoothed the fabric over her hips as she turned to look at herself in the mirror.

The suit fit perfectly, hugging Brennan's curves in all the right places, and it obviously made Brennan feel confident and beautiful. Angela winked at her friend and laughed. "I think Booth better hang on to his socks."


	3. Chapter 3 At the Beach

Booth stood staring out at the ocean as he dug his toes in the sand. The warm ripples of ocean water lapped gently around his bare feet, almost like a cat purring as it wound itself around his ankles. He was lost in thought, remembering the first time he'd stood on a seashore as if it were yesterday.

Pops and Nana had piled their two grandsons into their old battered Plymouth, along with towels, dry clothes, sandals, an umbrella, coolers, and perhaps enough food to feed the entire Albanian army. Booth smiled at the memory of the huge picnic basket that had been loaded in the car's trunk. His Nana didn't like to go anywhere far from home unless she was prepared for every possible contingency. " _She would've made a great general."_ , he thought, smiling at the idea of his petite grandmother cooking up strategy in a war room. She was always ready for anything life threw at her...

School was finally out for the summer, and Pops had taken a vacation day so they could leave early on a Friday morning and miss most of the summer beach crowd. They had a ninety minute drive from Philadelphia to Atlantic City, so Booth and Jared had sung silly songs and played word games with the license tags on other cars, trying to keep from bouncing out of the car in excitement. They were really going to see the ocean! For two young boys who'd never been far from home, it was almost too good to be true. They might as well have been going to the moon….

Booth knew he'd always remember Jared's squeal when he first saw the ocean appear on the horizon. The boys chattered excitedly as their grandfather pulled the car into the public parking lot next to the sandy shore. Pops got them calmed down enough to help carry everything out to the spot Nana had scoped out. Coolers, towels and beach chairs all had to be arranged to Nana's satisfaction before anything else could happen. It seemed like hours, but finally the boys could run down to the water's edge under Pops' watchful eye…

The ocean water came roaring in around their feet as the boys laughed and bounced up and down in the waves. Jared had fallen over in the water, but Pops was right there, chuckling as he set the youngster back on his feet again...the water dragged the sand out around their legs and carried it back in...the seabirds cried as they dove into the water looking for fish...Booth and Jared played and splashed and swam in the warm water….it was so much fun...

Then it was time to eat lunch. Nana had packed lots of sandwiches, sodas, and brownies, and Pops and the boys ate their fill until they felt like beached whales lying on their beach towels in the sun. Nana said they had to wait an hour before they could go back in the water, so the boys dug holes in the sand, looking for tiny crabs as they tried to get all the way down to China. Then they looked for seashells, filling their pails with all the treasures they found lying on the shore. They tried to build a sandcastle but finally gave up when they decided it was more fun making sand angels. Soon the brothers were covered in sand, and it was time to rinse off in the ocean again.

Jared and Booth played in the water for the rest of the day, until the sun began to edge down to meet the horizon. Nana said it was time to go home, so Pops and the boys carried everything back to the car and packed it up again. The Plymouth pulled out of the parking lot, ready to carry the family back to Philadelphia and away from the day of fun at the beach...a day Booth would remember for the rest of his life...a perfect day with his family.

Watching the sun dip down toward the horizon, Booth flicked away a tear. The people who made up his family that day were all gone now...all that was left was the warm memory of that special day. He turned and walked up the slight rise to where his children were playing in the sand under their mother's gentle supervision. It was time for this family to make their own perfect memories of being by the ocean...memories that his children could pass on to their own children when they brought them for a perfect day at the beach.


	4. Chapter 4 Sunburn

_A/N: this chapter is set about nine years in the future._

Brennan was sitting on the couch one evening, trying to work on the latest chapter for her new novel as she kept an eye on the time. It was nearly ten o'clock, and Christine hadn't come home yet. Brennan typed some more, trying to concentrate on Kathy and Andy instead of worrying about Christine. After all, it was a Friday night, so Christine could sleep in if she wanted on Saturday morning, but that wasn't the real problem. Christine had said she'd probably be home by nine, and that she'd call if she was going to be later than that, but so far, Brennan hadn't received a phone call or a text from her daughter.

Checking her phone again, Brennan sighed. She knew Christine was with Jennifer, and that Jennifer's mother had driven the girls to the local mall. In Brennan's opinion, Jennifer's mother was somewhat flighty, but because Jennifer and Christine had been friends since first grade, both Booth and Brennan knew Mrs. Applegate well and felt comfortable with her supervising the girls as they browsed through the stores.

Glancing at the time on her computer, Brennan pondered whether or not she should just give in to her concern and call Christine. Deciding that it would be the best thing to do to ease her mind, she was reaching for her phone when she heard the front door lock click as it was opened.

"Hey, Mom! I'm home." Christine walked briskly from the entry hall toward her bedroom. "I'm beat. I see you in the morning…"

"Just a minute, please, Christine." Brennan's tone of voice stopped Christine in her tracks. "I need to talk to you."

"Aw, Mom. Can't it wait until tomorrow? I'm dead on my feet.", Christine whined. "I promise we can talk first thing in the morning."

"Now." Brennan kept typing as she waited for Christine to come into the family room. "I thought you said you'd call if you were going to be late...oh, my God! What did you do?" Brennan bit her lip as she tried to keep from laughing out loud.

"Don't start, Mom, okay?" Christine looked like she was going to burst into tears. "Jennifer and her mom decided to get some of this new bronzing lotion at Sephora, and they offered to let me try some of it. I'm so tired of being so pale and white next to all my friends who have such beautiful tans! It makes me feel like I glow in the dark! Did you know that Harry Ellis says my skin is fish belly white?"

Brennan giggled slightly before pinching her lips together. "Bronzing lotions are better for your skin than sunbathing, but I'm not sure the color you've chosen was the correct shade. It seems to have given your skin quite an orange tinge…"

"I know, Mom! That's why I'm late! The stuff Mrs. Applegate bought is supposed to mix with a person's personal skin chemistry to create a natural tanned look, but it turned me orange! Jennifer and I have been trying to wash it off, but it stained my skin this color. I've tried everything! Soap, astringents, loofahs, brushes...God, I can't believe this…I look like a giant orange!" Two large tears ran down Christine's cheek. "I just want to die…"

Feeling sorry for her daughter, Brennan pulled her daughter down on the couch next to her. "I'm sorry, Christine. I know you're embarrassed about how the bronzer stained your skin, but it's not permanent. It'll fade in a few days." Brennan smiled ruefully. "I suppose it's somewhat unfair that you got your skin color genes from me instead of from your father. He always tans so easily." Christine nodded as she brushed her tears away. "Well, the good news is that you didn't hurt yourself using the bronzer." Brennan gave her daughter a gentle squeeze. "Did I ever tell you about the time I tried to get a suntan by laying out on a roof at Northwestern?"

"You tried to tan? Really, Mom?" Christine was shocked. "But you burn so badly…"

"I know, but that didn't matter to me. I had succumbed to peer pressure, and I was determined to get a tan. I hated my pale skin color and my freckles, and, because of the pictures of models in the fashion magazines, I wanted to look like someone who spent time outdoors in the sun. So my summer school roommate and I decided to lay out on the black tar paper roof of our dormitory to get a tan. We covered ourselves in baby oil and lay out in the afternoon sun. Unfortunately, I fell asleep as I was laying on my abdomen, and I got a horrible sunburn. The skin on my shoulders and the backs of my thighs was covered with blisters." Brennan winced at the memory. "My roommate ended up with a beautiful tan, but it took me weeks to recover from my burn. I probably should've gone to the university's infirmary for treatment, but I was too embarrassed to tell a doctor how stupid I'd been."

"Weeks?!", Christine gasped. "And you still went to class?"

"Yes, I had twelve hours that semester, and I couldn't miss class. It was painful to sit in my chair during long lectures, but I had to do it to achieve the grades I wanted."

"Wow. That must've hurt a lot. I guess that was the last time you tried to tan, right?" Christine waited expectantly for her mother's answer.

"Oh, no. I tried again, without the baby oil, and I still burned badly. Do you want to know what finally changed my mind?" Brennan smiled at her daughter as Christine nodded. "It's so silly...one of the boys in the dorm that summer was from Ireland. He was very cute, and he asked me out one day because he said my fair skin was so beautiful."

"You're making that up, Mom!" Christine giggled as her mother tickled her. "I know you. You probably read some article in a scientific journal that said tanning was bad for your skin, right?"

"Okay, you're correct." Pleased that her daughter was so intelligent, Brennan continued. "I'm fortunate I didn't develop skin cancer with my excessive exposure to the sun. I still have to be vigilant, and, unfortunately, you will need to be vigilant about sun exposure as well. We just don't have enough melanin in our skin to protect our cells from the damaging ultraviolet rays produced by the sun."

Christine nodded as she listened to her mother. "So tanning is out." Looking down at her orange arms, she sniffled slightly. "It looks like the bronzer is out. I guess I'm just going to be fish belly white for the rest of my life."

"Our fair skin was very much prized by the aristocracy of Europe as recently as seventy five years ago, Christine. That's why the word 'fair' is used as a synonym for beautiful. If Harry Ellis teases you about your fair complexion, you have the advantage. You're smart enough to understand why your skin doesn't tan. You're beautiful just the way you are, and if he's not smart enough to see that, then he is beneath your notice." Brennan glanced at the clock once again. "I think your father and Hank will be home from the hockey game soon. It might be a good idea to get ready for bed so I can fully explain what happened to your father before he sees your new skin color. In the meantime I'll look online to see if there are any suggestions for counteracting the bronzing solution." She leaned over and gave Christine a kiss on the top of her head. "Remember, Christine...I'll always love you, no matter what color you are…"

Christine kissed her mother's cheek and smiled. "I love you, too, Mom. Good night."

ooooo

 _A/N 2: I realize it would be out of character for Brennan to succumb to peer pressure as in this story, but Christine may not know that..._


	5. Chapter 5 Broken Air Conditioning

"Booth, why are you dressed like that? Aren't you going to work this morning?" Brennan tilted her head as she watched her husband hurry around the kitchen fixing his breakfast. "You're wearing shorts, a tee shirt, and gym shoes...That's not normal office attire…"

"Yeah, I know." He stirred the pancake batter and ladled some onto the hot griddle. "The air conditioner in the SUV is out, and the FBI garage isn't sure when they can get to it to fix it for me. They said it could be a couple of days...maybe as much as a week. A broken A/C unit isn't considered a top priority, I guess." He flipped a pancake onto his plate. "It's too hot to drive to work in a suit, so I'm going to drive to work in these clothes and then I'll shower and change when I get to work, and if it's really hot this afternoon, I'll change clothes before I come home. The weather forecast is calling for highs in the upper nineties today."

"Well, I guess that makes sense." Brennan nodded as she ate a bite of pancake. "What will you do about lunch today?"

Booth shrugged as he added more syrup to his plate. "I'll just walk to the diner, I guess. It's not that far from the Hoover." He took a sip of his coffee. "The guys in charge of the FBI motor pool said that if they can't fix the SUV's air conditioner soon, they'll get me a loaner to use."

"I can drive you to work if you want." Brennan put her plate in the sink. "Then I could pick you up for lunch…"

"Nah, I don't think so...I gotta take the SUV over to the garage anyway, and then they'll give me a ride over to the Hoover." Booth put the plates in the dishwasher and wiped his hands before checking his watch. "Jesus, look at the time. I gotta go."

"Oh, okay." She turned to get a kiss from Booth as he grabbed his garment bag. "I'll see you later."

"I love you, Bones. See you tonight." He raced to the door, missing the look of disappointment on his wife's face.

Oooooooooo

Booth's plan had worked well, and he was pleased with himself. He'd had a brief workout in the FBI gym, and then showered and changed into the appropriate attire for a day of work in the office. He was well into the paperwork for the day's case files when a reminder popped up on his computer's calendar. Seeing the date, he realized why his wife had been so curious about his lunch plans. Glancing at his watch, he pulled out his phone and sent a quick text.

 _Can you come get me? I want to buy you some lunch._

He didn't have to wait very long for her response.

 _Be there in thirty minutes._ :)

Thankful that he'd remembered this important date, he hurriedly finished the paperwork for the file he was working on and then left to run a few quick errands before his Bones arrived to pick him up.

Oooooooooo

Brennan pulled into the drive where her husband would be waiting, taking a few seconds to check her hair and lipstick before she met him. He greeted her with a happy smile, and handed her a bouquet of daffodils as he got into the car. "Here, these are for you…"

"Booth, they're beautiful, but you didn't have to…"

"I know, but I wanted to." He shrugged shyly. "I almost forgot what today is, you know...I was so irritated about the car and everything…I can't believe I was so thoughtless..."

"That's okay." Brennan smiled as she pulled her car away from the curb, knowing their destination without having to ask. "It's not that important…"

"Yes, it is. It'll always be a special date for me." He opened the paper bag he had with him. "Look...sushi and some of that fancy mineral water that you like. I thought something cool like this would be nice to have for lunch on a warm day like today."

"Good idea, Booth. Okay, here we are…" Brennan pulled into a parking lot. "Are you ready?"

"Yes. Let's go find our spot."

Booth took his wife's hand in his as they strolled up the National Mall. They found a shady bench by the coffee cart and decided it would be a fine place to eat their lunch. They sat quietly for a few minutes, enjoying their sushi and each other's company, until Booth spoke quietly.

"What's it been? Six years?"

Brennan nodded. "I believe so, although it's hard to believe it's been that long. In some ways it feels like it was just yesterday."

"You know, Bones...when I said we should meet at the coffee cart on the Mall before you left for Maluku and I left for Afghanistan, I wasn't sure if I was going to be able to keep that date. I knew there was a chance I wouldn't be able to keep it, but thinking about that date kept me going, you know?"

"Booth…" Brennan patted his knee, trying to chase away his sad thoughts. "I was looking forward to the date, too." She sighed quietly. "A lot of things have happened since we met at the coffee cart that evening after we returned from our different parts of the world."

"Yeah." Booth gazed across the Mall. "A lot of things...some things better than others. But we made it through all those things, good and bad, and no matter how hard things have been, we've managed to stay together, haven't we? That's why this date is so important to me. It reminds me that no matter what, we'll always belong together." He put his arm around his wife and pulled her close. "Happy Meet Me at the Mall Anniversary, Bones. I love you so much…"

Tears were shining in Brennan's eyes as she kissed her husband. "Happy Meet Me at the Mall Anniversary, Booth. I love you, too."


	6. Chapter 6 Ice Cream

Saturday morning was already hot and sticky when Booth lugged the big cardboard box from the garage into the kitchen. He wiped his face with a kitchen towel before he started to unpack all of the pieces from the box.

"What on Earth is that?" Brennan looked over the equipment with an air of suspicion, concerned that Booth might have a slightly hare-brained scheme in mind. "Whatever it is, it looks quite complicated."

Booth rolled his eyes at his wife as he spread the parts out on the kitchen counter. "It's an ice cream freezer, Bones. I got it at Priceco. I thought it might be fun for our family to make some homemade ice cream." Booth smiled happily as he put the freezer together. "I have some good memories of me and Jared helping Nana and Pops make homemade ice cream on their back stoop…"

"They made their own ice cream at home?" Brennan gave him a questioning look, wondering if he was teasing her.

"Yeah." Seeing his wife's confusion, Booth explained. "When Pops and Nana were young, most people didn't have a big freezer to store ice cream and stuff like that, so people made small batches of ice cream in a portable ice cream freezer. Nana and Pops got a hand crank freezer for a wedding gift, and they used it for a long time until they upgraded to an electric one. I still remember how much work it was to turn that big crank as the ice cream started to freeze." Reaching into a cabinet, Booth pulled out a battered metal box of full of recipe cards. "Remember when Pops sent you Nana's recipes? Here's the one for homemade ice cream. Originally it used raw eggs, but she changed it so it uses a cooked egg and milk custard."

Brennan grimaced as she read over the recipe and shook her head. "Evaporated milk, whole milk, sugar, and eggs...this recipe doesn't sound very healthy, Booth. It seems like there's a lot of sugar and fat in homemade ice cream. "

He chuckled as he nodded in agreement. "Well, that's sort of the point of having dessert, isn't it? C'mon...it won't hurt the kids or us to have a treat once in awhile. We can mix the stuff up and get it started. Then the kids can play outside and we can relax on the back porch and watch them having fun while the freezer does it's thing. It's a fun family activity. Christine and Hank can help me pack in the ice around the canister and pour in the salt, and maybe you can explain to the kids how salt affects the melting point of ice so it can be a scientific learning activity, too." Seeing his wife's dubious look, he pulled her close and gave her a kiss. "We can add some fruit to make it healthier, okay? And look what else I found in the recipe box...here's Nana's recipe for Italian Ice. I know you'll like that. I can put some of that in the regular freezer if you want."

"That does sound good." Brennan looked in the refrigerator and turned to Booth. "It looks like we have everything we need to make ice cream. I'll cut up some of these strawberries and we can mix them into the ice cream."

"Great! I'm gonna make the custard after lunch, and then we'll freeze it this afternoon. The ice cream will have to sit for awhile after it's churned so it can ripen, but we can have some for dessert after dinner."

"And then maybe later this evening, we can have another serving and let it melt..." Brennan quirked her eyebrow as she gave her husband a naughty grin.

"An excellent idea." Booth twitched his eyebrows at Brennan, chuckling as he wondered what his grandmother and grandfather would think about the different ways he enjoyed having ice cream with his wife. "I think using this ice cream freezer to make homemade ice cream is going to become part of some great family memories."

Brennan smirked as she chopped the strawberries. "I certainly hope so."


	7. Chapter 7 The Pool Party

_A/N: set about nine years in the future. A little over the top, just for fun..._

"Alright, Booth." Brennan was hurrying around the kitchen as she nibbled at the last of her lunch. "I'll see you later. I'm going to take Christine over to Angela's house and then go do some errands. I'll be gone a couple of hours or so." Brennan tucked her phone into her purse and pulled out her keys as she called to her daughter. "Christine, are you ready? You don't want to be late…"

"What's going on at Angela's house today?" Booth peered over the sports section of the newspaper as he ate a bite of his sandwich. "I don't remember hearing about anything going on this afternoon."

"Angela and Jack are hosting an end of school pool party this afternoon. Michael-Vincent has invited several of his friends over to swim and have a cookout." Brennan loaded some plates in the dishwasher as she waited for Christine. "She'll be gone most of the afternoon. Hank is going to the movies with friends, so you'll have the house to yourself for awhile. Maybe you can work on the Mustang if you want to…"

Booth's eyes narrowed as he folded his newspaper. "Wait a minute. Are there gonna be boys at this pool party? Teenaged boys? Horny teenaged boys?"

"Well, Booth, Michael-Vincent is a boy, so I suppose there will be at least one boy there…" Brennan rolled her eyes at her husband. "And yes, there will be other boys there as well, but I don't know whether or not they'll be horny. He invited his whole homeroom, boys and girls alike. Angela is expecting approximately twenty guests. Christine won't be the only girl there…"

"Probably not, but she'll be my only daughter there, with all of those fifteen year old boys...and trust me, they'll be all horny with all those cute girls there. Remember, I used to be a fifteen year old boy, and it felt like I was in a constant state of horniness at that age. I don't like this pool party idea...not one bit. That's probably why you didn't tell me about the party, right? You knew I wouldn't want her to go." Booth sat back and crossed his arms over his chest. "Maybe I should go over to Angela's and chaperone the party...you know, help Angela out a bit. With twenty kids there, she's gonna need all the help she can get."

Brennan was clearly exasperated with her husband. "Booth, you're being ridiculous. Jack will be there to help Angela. You don't feel the need to chaperone them at school, right? We've raised Christine to know how to behave in public, and she knows all of the boys who are attending the party this afternoon. If she feels uncomfortable in the situation, she'll call me, and I'll go pick her up. You're making this more of a problem then it really is..."

"I'm ready to go, Mom." Christine came into the kitchen wearing a pink and white polka dot bikini and sandals. "I've got sunscreen, but I'll probably wear this tee shirt over my bathing suit, too, so I don't burn."

"Definitely wear the tee shirt over that swimsuit, Baby." Booth nodded in agreement. "You're right. Actually, maybe you should wear two tee shirts over your suit. You don't want to burn, what with your skin being so delicate and all."

"Oh...I forgot my sunglasses and a hair tie. I left them on my dresser. I'll be right back." Christine went back to her bedroom to get her forgotten items.

"Bones!", Booth whispered. "I can't believe you let her get that swimsuit. It makes her look too old...like someone in her thirties." Booth was in a state of shock over his little girl's womanly figure and long legs. "Christine has breasts! When did that happen? That top definitely shows too much…she definitely needs two tee shirts over that thing...maybe a sweatshirt."

"Booth, Christine experienced the onset of puberty two years ago, and she has been experiencing the development of her secondary sex characteristics since then. She's worn that swimsuit before, and yes, she's worn it in the presence of teenaged boys." Brennan glared at him as she shook her head. "She's well aware of how to conduct herself appropriately. You don't need to go sit by Angela's pool with your service revolver in view...oh, there you are, Christine. Alright, are you ready?" Brennan gave Booth a kiss. "We'll see you in a few hours…"

"Bye, Daddy." Christine kissed her father's cheek. "Don't worry. I'll be good at the party. And you don't have to worry about all of the other boys at the party, Daddy. Michael-Vincent told them at school last week that I'm off limits now because I'm his girlfriend." She winked at him and smiled as she turned to her mother. "Let's go, Mom."

"Oh, okay. Have fun, Sweetheart." Somewhat consoled, Booth turned back to his lunch as Brennan and his daughter left the house until something else occurred to him. "Wait a minute...she's Michael-Vincent's girlfriend? Since when is my daughter old enough to have a boyfriend?"


	8. Chapter 8 House Party

The children were already in bed by the time Booth and Brennan sat down to enjoy a quiet evening meal together. "Oh, I forgot to tell you. This came in the mail today. We received an invitation to go to the Detwylers for a house party next Saturday evening." Brennan handed the invitation to Booth as she sat down next to him at the dining room table. "Would you like to go for a couple of hours? It sounds like it might be fun."

Looking over the invitation, Booth scratched his head as he pondered the question for a few seconds. "Who are the Detwylers again? I don't recognize the name." Booth ate a bite of his steak. "Oh, wait. Aren't they the parents of one of Christine's classmates? The little boy that Christine says is so 'icky'?"

"Yes, that's them." Brennan grimaced slightly as she twirled her pasta around her fork. "I've explained to Christine that it's not nice to call her classmates names, especially names like 'icky' and 'gross', because she might hurt someone's feelings. However, I've met Matthew, and I'm afraid…" She hesitated as she tried to explain what she was thinking.

"I know...you agree with Christine. You think he really is icky, right?" Booth smirked at his wife. "Little girls always think little boys are icky and that they have cooties and smell bad, and the little boys think that about the little girls, too. That just goes with the territory when it comes to dealing with first graders. Parker was the same way when he was that age. Now, what makes Matthew Detwyler so much ickier than the average little boy?"

Brennan shrugged as she sipped her wine. "I don't know, precisely. His manners are quite rough, and it seems he's rather rowdy. Christine says he chases her around the playground during recess, and he then he tries pulls her ponytail or tickle her. He teases her about her freckles quite a bit, and he calls her names. I guess his favorite name for her is Frecklehead. Christine finds him quite annoying." Taking another bite of pasta, Brennan continued. "Perhaps I should call her teacher tomorrow to discuss the situation."

"I don't think you need to call the teacher yet." Laughing out loud, Booth shook his head at his wife. "Matthew isn't being any ickier than normal, Bones. Matthew's just in love. When a six year old boy chases a six year old girl around the schoolyard, teases her, and has a special name for her, he's got a big crush on her. I think Matthew has a thing for Christine. They'll probably be a couple before you know it." Smiling as he cut his steak, Booth winked at his wife. "Maybe the Detwylers just want to invite the future in laws over, you know? Maybe they want to check us out and make sure we're good enough for their kid. I'm sure they don't want their son to hang out with just anybody's daughter." Seeing his wife's scowl, Booth laughed again. "So does Christine act icky toward Matthew? I know you said she calls him names, but does she chase him? Does she have an special name she uses only for him?"

"She says that she chases him away as best as she can, but he keeps coming back to bother her. I think she calls him a special name, but I can't remember what it is." Brennan's brow furrowed as she tried to remember.

"Troglodyte?", Booth offered. "Is this Matthew kid the troglodyte?"

"No, Lucas is the troglodyte. Matthew is...Oh, yes. I remember." Brennan pinched her lips together to keep from giggling. "Christine calls him Rat-you. It's not very nice. I've corrected her so many times that I finally had to tell her that if I heard it again, she'd be grounded from using her tablet for two weeks. It really is not acceptable to act that way…" She gave her husband a serious look before beginning to laugh softly about the situation.

"She really did come up with a very creative name for him, but you're right, Bones. It's not acceptable for her to call people names." He took another sip of wine. "You know what this means, right? The fact that she also chases Matthew and has a special nickname for him means that Lucas is out of luck. Christine has left Lucas with a broken heart and she's moved on to Rat-you Detwyler."

"Booth! You can't call him that!" Brennan stared at her husband in mock horror. "What if we decide to go to the party and you accidentally refer to him by that name in front of his parents? That would be terrible!"

Booth chuckled as he nodded reluctantly. "I guess you're right. They might take it the wrong way if we call their kid a mean name." Booth picked up the invitation again and shrugged. "Anyway, I guess we might as well go to the party. It might be fun for a change. Why don't you call Max to see if he can babysit for us? I want to meet the parents of my daughter's latest squeeze, anyway."

Pretending to be annoyed at her husband, Brennan ate another bite of pasta. Finally, she smiled demurely at her husband as she lay her fork across her plate and leaned across the table toward him. "You know, Booth, you've had a special name for me since you've known me, and you used to act icky and tease me a lot when we first started working together. Does that mean you've had a crush on me for a very long time?"

Twitching his eyebrows, Booth reached across the table to clasp Brennan's hand. "You better believe it, Bones...and after dinner tonight, maybe I'll chase you around the house to prove it."

Brennan giggled as she arched an eyebrow at her husband. "If you're lucky, Booth, I may even let you catch me…"


	9. Chapter 9 Firefly

_A/N: the episode of Firefly referred to in this chapter is called "Out of Gas". I don't own the episode, of course, or the Bones characters._

Booth walked quietly through the family room on the way to the kitchen for a midnight snack, pausing as he noticed that his wife was engrossed in a television program on Netflix. Knowing that she had eclectic taste in entertainment, he stopped for a minute or two to see what she was watching so intently.

"Whatcha watchin' there, Bones? It's kinda late for tv, isn't it? I know it's Saturday night, but you're usually in bed by now.", he asked as he gently plopped on the couch next to her. "It looks like you're enjoying it, whatever it is…"

Brennan pressed the pause button before she turned to glower at her husband. "I am enjoying it, and I'd really rather not be interrupted right now. This is a pivotal scene in the episode, Booth. The ship's life support system has malfunctioned, and the crew are running low on oxygen. The captain is trying to replace the catalyzer in the engine so the life support can function again, but because he's badly injured, he's having a great deal of difficulty and his success is in doubt." She shuddered slightly. "Even though I usually find this program entertaining, in some ways I find this episode very frightening. It reminds me somewhat of being buried in the car all those years ago when Hodgins and I were running low on oxygen. However, for some reason I find that I can't look away from this episode until I know what happens to the captain and his crew."

Booth put his arm around Brennan to comfort her. "Would you enjoy the episode more if I sit here with you for a few minutes until you find out what happens?"

Smiling, she nodded as she leaned against her husband while he rubbed her shoulders. As she pressed play, the episode continued. The captain was finally able to replace the needed part in the engine, allowing the life support system to begin functioning correctly, and thus saving himself, his crew, and his ship. "I'm glad that turned out well. I feel much better, Booth. Thanks for sitting with me until the end of the episode."

"Any time, Bones. I used to love this show when I was younger." Booth winked slyly at Brennan. "You know, the show you're watching now...Firefly? It was created by Joss Whedon, the same guy who created Buffy and Angel. Maybe that's why you like it so much."

Brennan nodded in agreement. "Perhaps you're correct, Booth. I can see some similarities in the way the programs are written, particularly in the way he's combined the two wildly different genres of westerns and science fiction into a single program, and yet the show is still very entertaining and also thought provoking. The dialogue, character development and the dramatic structure are excellent. Mr. Whedon must have a very active imagination."

"True." Booth hesitated as he watched with interest when the character of Inara Serra appeared in the next episode in the queue. "Hmm. I always thought she was a very interesting character."

Pausing the program again, Brennan pursed her lips. "I imagine you think so because the actress that portrays her is an extremely attractive woman." She narrowed her eyes at Booth as she pretended to slap him on the arm. "I believe you're ogling that woman, Booth."

"I am not!" Booth pretended to be annoyed. "I was admiring her acting skills." Brennan rolled her eyes at him before turning back to the television. "Anyway, Bones, I know you usually admire the actors on these programs, too. Remember how much you admired the man who played Spike on Buffy? I suppose you're going to tell me that you don't find the actor that portrays Malcolm Reynolds to be attractive, too."

She shrugged blandly. "He's a fairly attractive man. I liked him better on Buffy when he played that evil character Caleb." She paused the program to look up the actor's name on the credits. "I'm not sure he's actually been in anything besides Buffy and Firefly…"

Laughing out loud, Booth looked at his wife in surprise. "C'mon, Bones, you should know better than that. He's the guy on that one show...you know, the one you thought was so ridiculous? Where the mystery novelist works with the New York City homicide detective?"

"Oh, yes...now I remember. You're right...that program is ridiculous. Imagine an untrained civilian tagging along with a group of police detectives during an active murder investigation. They even allow him to participate in their interrogations of suspects from time to time." Brennan sighed in frustration. "I find it hard to believe intelligent people would actually watch that show."

"Well, they can't watch it any more. It got cancelled…" Booth grimaced and shook his head. "Too bad, really. I mean, I didn't like the program all that much, but I kinda feel bad about those actors who are losing their jobs. I mean, I guess they'll be able to find another television series to do. Both of the people who played the leads are popular actors, and if they want to work full time, they'll get another opportunity."

"I suppose." Brennan snuggled next to her husband and gave him a flirty grin. "Would you like to watch another episode of Firefly with me? I find that I quite enjoy spending my time like this with you."

Booth smiled as he pointed the remote at the television. "Sounds good…although it's too bad there aren't any ads on Netflix. I don't know when I'm gonna get some love and attention from my wife if there aren't any commercial breaks during the episode."

Brennan smirked as she wrapped her arms around him. "I'm sure we'll figure out something."


	10. Chapter 10 Fourth of July

**_A/N: set about 8 years in the future._**

 _Social Studies Report: The Fourth of July_

 _By: Hank Booth Grade 3_

 _The Fourth of July is a special holiday in the United States. When I was little, I didn't know why, and I used to think it was dumb, because everybody in the world has a July 4 on their calendar. But then my dad told me all about it. So here's the story. A long time ago there was a bunch of guys that used to be friends with each other even though they lived really far apart from each other. But then they decided they didn't want to play together anymore because they were mad at each other about a whole bunch of stuff. The guys from England were bullying the guys from America, and they were taking their stuff and breaking it and keeping the good stuff for their king and it made the Americans mad. The English were also bossy and wanted to tell the Americans what to do all the time, kind of like how my sister tries to boss me around. The English also wanted the Americans to pay taxes, but the Americans were like "no fair. We don't even live there in England any more. You don't get to spend any of our money on stuff you want and we don't get to use. We want to spend our money on our own stuff."_

 _So the Americans sent the English this long letter and said they wanted to be left alone so they could play by themselves, but the English guys didn't want to do that. The English actually thought they owned America, which is just wrong because they didn't pay for it or anything like that. I guess the English guys had a lot of fun being mean to the Americans while they messed up their houses and ate all their food and stuff like that. Then this one man named John Hancock wrote his name bigger on the letter than the rest on the letter because he was the head of the American guys and he wanted to prove to the English guys that he was a famous man. I don't know if that worked but I don't think so because I never heard about him before I wrote this report._

 _My dad said that the Americans had a guy named Thomas Jefferson write this long letter to the English which is called the declaration of independence. This letter says "go away and leave us alone, English people." Tom must have been a real smart man because the place where my mom works is named after him, and she's a smart lady, plus the letter is very long. My dad says Tom wrote the letter and everybody who agreed with him signed it in Philadelphia because they were all smart enough to live there instead of Washington, DC. My dad likes Philadelphia because he used to live there. Anyway, the Americans said they wouldn't be friends with the English guys any more, so they had a war to solve the problem instead, which is bad. It would have been easier to tell an adult about the argument so they didn't have to fight._

 _All of this happened in 1776, which is a long time ago. We still have parties and shoot firecrackers and stuff because Tom wrote the letter to get the English guys to leave us alone which is strange. My mom writes books all the time but no one shoots firecrackers around her. Anyway, the fourth of July is a fun holiday. I'm glad it's in summer so we can go to the lake that day and shoot off rockets and stuff over the water, and anyway fourth of October sounds weird._

 _The End._

Oooooooooo

After dinner, Brennan sat down on the sofa and showed Booth the email she'd received from Hank's teacher. "Mrs. Poindexter would like Hank to correct his report about the Fourth of July and resubmit it. She says it is too short, and she wants him to stay on the facts instead of opinions about the holiday. Hank was supposed to use some sources for his report other than his father's explanation about why we celebrate the Fourth of July." Grimacing as she read Hank's report again, Brennan shook her head. "Hank really did a good job of capturing your speech patterns in his report, but he was supposed to do his own research on the internet instead of asking you for help."

"I don't see what the big deal is, Bones." Booth shrugged as he sipped his Scotch. "He asked me about the Fourth of July, and I tried to explain it to him in a way that he'd understand better by giving him a real life example that he might be more familiar with. Most kids are familiar with the concept of bullying, and I thought it would be helpful for him."

Brennan rolled her eyes at her husband. "Booth, Hank is intellectually gifted. He reads and writes on the eighth grade level, so he's well ahead of his classmates in that regard. His Social Studies class is an enrichment program for students who can move at a faster pace than the average third grader. He's quite capable of understanding the concepts which led to the signing of the Declaration of Independence without having them oversimplified." She shook her head as she glanced at the report again. "It seems Hank is also smart enough to figure out how to avoid doing his homework."

"Wait...are you saying that Hank asked me for help because he didn't want to do the work himself? I'll be damned…" Booth was shocked, scratching the back of his neck as he thought over the situation. "That sneaky little devil...he was just trying to get out of doing the research for his report, wasn't he? He's actually pretty clever to be able to pull that off, I guess. He sure had his old man fooled. I thought he really needed help." Sighing, Booth grimaced ruefully. "Since he's so much smarter than me, I'm not going to be able to help him much with any of his schoolwork any more, am I? Some dad I am..."

Realizing that Booth was upset by his apparent failure as a parent, Brennan smiled gently as she patted his knee. "You're a great father for our children, Booth, and you're going to prove that to Hank right now. You're going to explain to Hank why taking the easy way out and cutting corners on his schoolwork is not a good thing, and how the only way to truly get ahead in school and in life is through hard work and by always giving his best effort. Hank loves and respects you, Booth. If he knows that you're disappointed about his failure to do his best on his schoolwork, and that you expect him to always do his best, no matter what, he'll strive to do better, and in the long run, I believe he'll gain a valuable lesson...maybe even more valuable than learning about the history behind the Fourth of July."

"Do you really think so, Bones?" Booth put his arm around his wife and pulled her close. "I'd like to think I could have that kind of influence on our kids."

"I know so, Booth." She reached up to kiss his cheek. "You're always a good influence on our children. I'm so glad they have you in their lives."

"Thanks." He kissed the top of her head and gave her a squeeze before he rose from the sofa. "I guess I'd better go talk to Hank. It looks like he has some work to get done before his hockey practice tomorrow. I'm going to closely supervise his research this time, and he's going to do some 'A' quality work on that report, even if he doesn't get full credit for it."

Brennan smiled to herself as she watched her husband walk toward Hank's room, realizing once again how fortunate she was to have such a wonderful father for her children.


	11. Chapter 11 Fireworks

_A/N: set in Season 4._

"I don't want to hear it, Bones!" Booth's jaw was set in a grimace as he stared out the front window of the SUV. He held up his hand to interrupt her. "Enough. I can't believe you'd ruin a perfectly good holiday like that."

"I didn't ruin the holiday, Booth. I'm simply stating the facts. It's the truth." Brennan rolled her eyes at her partner's stubborn demeanor. "I don't see why it has to change anything…"

"It changes everything. It'll never be the same." Booth puffed out an angry sigh. "You really can be a know-it-all, you know? Did it ever occur to you to just keep those facts and statistics to yourself? Maybe I don't need to know everything that goes on in that oversized brain of yours."

Brennan crossed her arms over her chest as she turned to glare at her partner. "My brain is normal sized. Personally, I don't think this discussion has anything to do with my brain size as much as it has to do with the fact that you are an extremely narrow minded person who is unable to admit that he might be wrong about something once in awhile."

"I'm narrow minded? Really, Bones? You're the one who only believes in something if you can see it and measure it." Booth pounded the car's steering wheel. "You can't even imagine that your beloved science might not be able to explain something, can you? And not only that, you think that anyone who believes differently than you do is just stupid. That's what I call being narrow minded."

"Natural phenomena will always follow the laws of physics, Booth." Brennan rolled her eyes as she turned away from him. "That's why the laws of physics are called laws. You can't break those laws, no matter how much you might want to believe the silly fables you hear at your church."

It was his turn to glare at her as he spoke angrily. "That's beside the point, Bones. Just because you're a scientist, it doesn't mean you need to go around ruining things for other people. We don't all have to believe the same things you do just because you call something a fact."

"I'm not just calling these things facts merely to irritate you, Booth. The chemical reactions that cause the colors to occur in various fireworks is not something you can believe or disbelieve. It's a proven fact that copper produces blue when it burns at a certain temperature, and barium produces green. The Chinese figured that out two millennia ago, and they used those reactions to produce colorful displays when they burned the compounds after they were ignited by gunpowder. I don't understand why that's so upsetting for you. It's just science…" Brennan's tone of voice told Booth that he'd hurt her feelings.

He shrugged an apology, realizing he'd probably overreacted. "I don't know...for me, it takes some of the fun and mystery out of the Fourth of July holiday when I think that instead of watching a beautiful fireworks display glowing in the sky in celebration of our country's independence, I'm just watching a series of chemical reactions take place. It just doesn't seem the same to me somehow."

"But science is beautiful, Booth." Brennan smiled as she explained what she meant. "To me, when I think about the idea that there's a specific ratio that can be used to produce a series of color changes in an exploding firework, I'm thrilled and amazed. It takes both a scientist and an artist to produce a beautiful fireworks display. When I watch a show and I understand how it happens, it just enhances my enjoyment of the moment."

Booth glanced at his partner and saw her happy glow as she explained how she felt about science, and he grudgingly realized that maybe she was right. Maybe he was being somewhat narrow minded. "Okay, well, I'll keep that in mind when we take Parker to watch the display on the Capitol lawn this weekend. Anyway, I'm glad they're still gonna have my favorite part of the show. They're gonna end the fireworks display with the big finale and the cannons firing when the Marine Corps band plays the 1812 Overture. God, I love that song…it's pretty exciting when they fire those cannons at the end while the fireworks explode overhead."

"I never understood that." Brennan shook her head as her brows knit together.

"Understood what? They play the song and the artillery guys load the cannons with blanks and shoot them in time with the music…"

"Not that." She sighed in frustration. "Of course, I understand that. What I don't understand is why they play the 1812 Overture. That piece of music isn't about the United States. It's about Russia defeating Napoleon and the celebration that took place in Moscow."

"No, it's not. That can't be right." Booth was shocked. "I think you're wrong, Bones. The 1812 Overture is about the War of 1812 and the attack on the White House and the flag flying at Fort McHenry in Baltimore Harbor."

"No, that's not right, Booth. It isn't about our war. It was written by a Russian man...Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky wrote it about the Russians winning the Battle of Moscow in 1812." Brennan showed him the article that she had pulled up on her phone for him to see. "Don't try to read it while you're driving. You can look at it later."

"Great. That's just great." Booth blew out another sigh as he pulled the SUV into the parking garage. "So we celebrate American independence with Chinese fireworks and Russian music. What a country."

"It takes all kinds of people to make America great, Booth. That's part of our country's strength." She smiled at him as they walked away from the car. "I'm looking forward to the fireworks show this weekend. I'm going to pack some food for us so we can have a picnic. I'm bringing some tofu and some sushi for me. What would you like?"

He grinned as he escorted her onto the elevator. "I don't know, Bones. How about some Polish sausage, mozzarella cheese, French bread, Spanish olives, some German potato salad and some Canadian beer? We might as well go all the way in celebrating American diversity."

She laughed as she pushed the elevator buttons. "You know what, Booth? Maybe you're not so narrow minded after all."


	12. Chapter 12 Barbecue

Booth came home late in the evening from a long day of work, tired and ravenously hungry. He'd been much too busy with the witness interviews and evidence paperwork relating to his latest case to leave the Hoover for lunch, and his lukewarm cup of ramen noodles hadn't lasted nearly long enough to keep a grown man's hunger satisfied. "Hey, Bones! How'ya doing?" He kissed his wife and hung his overcoat in the closet. "I'm so starved I could even eat some of that seitan stuff. God, something smells good." He sniffed around the counter looking for his dinner. "Oh, here it is…" He lifted the lid on the pan that was merrily bubbling on the stove and inhaled a heavenly aroma. "Barbecue...wow, this smells fantastic." He picked up the spoon next to the stove and took a taste, nodding as he grinned widely. "It tastes just as good as it smells."

Brennan smiled as her husband raved about how good the barbecue smelled. "The children and I have already eaten, Booth, but I made sure they saved enough for you to have several sandwiches since I knew you'd be so hungry. Have a seat at the table and I'll bring you a plate." She set the table quickly before putting a large serving bowl full of the barbecue and a basket of kaiser rolls on the table, along with a plate holding heaping pile of french fries, a cereal bowl full of coleslaw, and a bottle of his favorite Canadian beer. "There you are, Booth. I hope you like it. I tried a new recipe. It was quite interesting to research all of the regional variations in barbecue sauce, but I finally decided to try this tomato based sauce."

"This is great, Bones." Booth closed his eyes and sighed in appreciation as he wiped some barbecue sauce from the corners of his mouth. "The coleslaw and french fries are great, too. I actually prefer the tomato based sauces like this one to those thin sauces like they put on meat in the Carolinas. Of course, I like the Texas style, too, where they marinate the meat before they cook it and then add the sauce later. But I love this stuff. This sauce is homemade, isn't it? I'm pretty sure you didn't get this out of a bottle."

"Yes, it's my own creation. I used organic tomato sauce, some maple syrup, coarse ground mustard, some garlic, and a small amount of brown sugar. It took me a while to figure out the proper ratio for all of the ingredients, but I was pleased with the results." She laughed as he fixed himself another sandwich. "I hope we left enough food for you, Booth. Isn't that you're third sandwich? I believe Agent Aubrey's eating habits must be rubbing off on you."

"I can't help it. This stuff is great. I love how it's shredded like this." He pointed to the barbecue in the bowl. "I hope you wrote out the recipe for the sauce, because I'm gonna wanna have this for dinner again. It's so good that I might even take some in my lunch just to spite Aubrey. He thinks he's such a barbecue connoisseur. I bet he's never tasted anything like this."

Brennan smiled as she watched her husband eat his sandwich. "I'm sure that's true, Booth. I wrote down the ratio of the ingredients so I can make this again. I'm glad you're enjoying it so much."

Booth sat back in his chair and patted his abdomen. "Man, that was great. Thanks, Bones. You're the best!"

She smirked at him as she started to pick up the dirty dishes. "I have an idea. Why don't you go run yourself a bath? I'll be in to join you after I clean up the kitchen. Perhaps I'll even bring your beer hat..."

"Really?" Booth's grin was spread from ear to ear as he stood up and embraced her. "Yeah, a bath together sounds great, but what's the occasion? Did I forget an anniversary or something?"

"No special occasion." Brennan smiled demurely as she ran her hands down her husband's broad chest. "I just think you deserved to be pampered a bit every now and then. You work very hard, and you deserve it."

"I see." He gave her a slightly suspicious glance. "Just pampering, huh? No ulterior motives?"

Brennan pretended to be shocked. "Of course not! I just want to show you how much I love you, but if you're not interested…"

"Oh, I'm interested." He laughed as he gave her a quick kiss. "I'll see you in the bathtub, Bones…" He winked at her as he turned to walk toward their bedroom.

After watching him walk away, Brennan rinsed the dishes and loaded them in the dishwasher before getting the trash ready to go out. She laughed to herself as she pushed the empty tofu wrappers deep down into the trash can. It wasn't as if she had actually planned to deceive Booth. She'd really planned on telling her husband that the barbecue sauce was actually covering firm tofu that she'd finely shredded, but he'd enjoyed it so much she'd decided not to ruin his meal by exposing her subterfuge. What was it Angela had said? _What Booth doesn't know won't hurt him._ Brennan knew that transparency was important to maintaining a relationship, but maybe this was one instance where it wasn't completely necessary. She chuckled as she started the dishwasher and picked up Booth's beer hat. Maybe she did have an ulterior motive for pampering Booth, but maybe that wasn't a bad thing since they would both enjoy their time together this evening. And maybe...just maybe...he really didn't need to know _everything_ that went into that wonderful barbecue recipe.


	13. Chapter 13 Planting a Garden

It was a sunny Saturday morning in late April as Booth stood looking out the kitchen window while he rinsed his breakfast dishes in the sink. "I think that spot out there by the fence might be a good place for a vegetable garden, Bones. It looks like it gets sun most of the day. I'd love to plant some tomatoes…"

Brennan came and stood next to her husband as he gazed out the window. "I think a small garden would be nice to have, Booth. I'd enjoy having some fresh herbs for cooking and maybe some lettuce and spinach before the weather gets too hot. Maybe we could grow some snow peas as well. I like adding them to my stir fry recipes." She paused as she thought for a few minutes. "Do you think we'll have time to take care of a garden? With all of the weeding, watering, and other maintenance, having a garden can be quite time consuming, and our schedules are already quite hectic."

"Well, it's not like we're gonna plant forty acres. I was thinking about maybe getting three or four tomato plants...you know, a slicing kind for sandwiches and maybe some plum tomatoes for cooking. I'd like some bell peppers, too, and some basil. That shouldn't take up much room. I can make a trellis for your snow peas, and we can lay out a small section for some herbs...and maybe a few onion sets. I think we can keep it manageable, and, anyway, gardening is supposed to be relaxing, right?" Booth smiled as he pulled his wife into his embrace. "I'd love to be able to make some spaghetti sauce with my own vegetables. Homemade sauce from homegrown tomatoes can't be beat. Nana used to grow tomatoes, and then she'd can them and use them in soup and spaghetti sauce over the winter. Maybe we can dry our tomatoes and add them to salads…"

Shaking her head at Booth's big plans, Brennan chuckled. "Before we make plans for preserving our excess produce, perhaps we should plant the garden and see what actually grows..."

"Yeah, you're right. Okay, I'm gonna go figure out exactly where I want to put the garden, and then we'll go to Priceco and see about some plants and seeds." Booth nodded with satisfaction. "This is gonna be great…"

Oooooooooo

It was the third week in May, and Booth's vegetable garden was flourishing nicely. The tomato plants and pepper plants were covered in blossoms, and the herb plants seemed to be growing at a record pace. The snow peas had started to send out delicate tendrils as they climbed up the trellis. Brennan had planted a row of onions, a row of radishes, and a row of carrots, and the plants were healthy and green. "I think our garden looks very nice, Booth, but don't you think you should put some sort of fence around it?"

"Nah...I don't think we've got that many animals around here...I think the plants will be okay."

Brennan was about to disagree when Christine came running up to her breathlessly. "Mommy! Come see what I found!" The little girl grabbed her mother's hand and led her over to a shaded flower bed next to the house. "Look at these baby animals! I counted five of them! They're so little and cute, Mommy, but I don't know what kind they are…" Christine reached down to pick up one of the tiny animals, but Brennan quickly stopped her.

"Those are baby rabbits, Christine. They've probably just emerged from their warren for the first time. I'm sure their mother is nearby, so we need to leave them alone. She'll come back soon to take care of them." Brennan smiled down at her young daughter. "You're right...they are very cute. Look at their little bunny ears." Christine chattered happily about the baby bunnies as she knelt down to get a better look at them, but being careful not to get too close to them. Glancing back toward Booth as he worked in the garden, Brennan sighed softly as she considered the burgeoning rabbit population in their backyard. _I hope these rabbits don't eat the vegetables in our garden...things may not go well for them if they do..._

Oooooooooo

Two weeks later, Booth came storming angrily into the kitchen as Brennan and Christine were having lunch. "Something's been eating the plants in our garden! The radishes have been completely chewed up, and my tomato plants have been gnawed on. Whatever it was even ate some of the basil and part of the beans…" He puffed out an exasperated sigh. "...and it looks like most of the lettuce plants are history. That's really annoying. All that work we put in to grow vegetables in the garden and now it's become an outdoor salad bar for the local wildlife!"

"It's unfortunate that you weren't able to erect a fence in time to keep the animals out of the garden." Brennan bit her lip to keep from laughing. "I think this is a case of closing the gate after the cow has escaped."

"You mean closing the barn door after the horse has run off. Yeah, very funny. I think we've probably been overrun by rabbits who think our garden is their dinner table. Well, I'm gonna fix that problem permanently. I'm just gonna go to the hardware store and get some rabbit traps. That oughta do the trick…and then, wham! No more rabbits."

Christine tugged on her father's arm. "Daddy, you're not going to hurt the bunnies, are you? Are you going to be like Mr. McGregor?"

Booth gave his wife a confused glance. "Mr. McGregor?"

"Yes." Brennan gave her husband a look warning him to tread carefully as she explained. "In the story of Peter Rabbit, Mr. McGregor has a very nice vegetable patch. Peter's mother warns him not to go there to steal the vegetables, because his father had an accident there, and Mrs. McGregor put Peter's father into a pie. However, Peter doesn't listen to his mother, and he goes to steal more vegetables, but Mr. McGregor sees him. Mr. McGregor chases Peter around the garden and almost catches him, which scares Peter so badly it makes him too ill to have any supper when he finally gets home." Brennan nodded slightly toward Christine. "Christine doesn't want the rabbits in our yard to have the same sort of accidents that Peter's father had."

"Oh…" Booth grimaced slightly as he looked down at Christine. "I'm not going to hurt the bunnies, Christine. I'm just going to catch them and move them to another place where they can eat something besides our garden."

"But if you separate them like that, won't they miss their mother? Anyway, Daddy, it's not their fault that they ate the plants in the garden. Bunnies aren't very smart, and they don't know any better. All they knew was that they were hungry and the plants were there for them to eat. If you didn't want animals to eat your plants, Daddy, you should've put a fence around them to keep the bunnies out." Christine began to cry. "It's not fair! I don't want you to catch the bunnies, Daddy! They'll be really scared if they're separated from their mother, and there won't be anyone to protect them from hawks and owls if you move them somewhere else!", she sobbed noisily.

"Christine, your Daddy is a kind and gentle man. If he says he won't hurt the rabbits, you can trust him. He'll catch as many as he can and then we'll move all of them to a nice grassy park where they'll have plenty to eat…right, Daddy?" Booth nodded solemnly in agreement. Brennan smiled gently as she daubed at Christine's eyes with a tissue. "And then, Christine, you and I can make the fence around the garden in case more rabbits come to live in our yard, alright?"

Christine sniffled as she nodded, blinking back her tears. "Okay, Mommy." The little girl turned to her father. "Daddy, can I go to the store with you to help you get the right kind of traps that won't hurt the bunnies?

Booth reached down and ruffled Christine's hair slightly. "Of course, Sweetheart, and while we're there, let's buy the materials for the fence, okay?" He grinned at Brennan. "Maybe Mommy will let me help build the fence, too."


	14. Chapter 14 In The Park

It was almost noon as Brennan strode purposefully down the steps of the Jeffersonian and toward the nearby shady park where she was supposed to meet Booth for lunch. The middle of May had the park blooming with fuchsia azaleas, pale pink dogwoods, and fluffy white pear trees. The perennial flowers were at their peak, making the park a beautiful place to enjoy a sandwich and some shared time with her husband.

Brennan had decided to leave work slightly early, hoping to walk a few laps of the trail that circled the park before Booth arrived at the park from work. Even though she had been well aware of the changes her body had undergone during her pregnancy with Hank, she was somewhat uncomfortable with the fact that she was still carrying a bit of leftover baby weight. Of course, Booth, being the loving husband that he was, always insisted that she was the most beautiful woman in the world, extra weight or not, but she was determined to drop the last few stubborn pounds, and she knew that she'd benefit from the exercise. The blossoming trees in the park provided a shady canopy on the trail, so it was a pleasant place to take a brisk stroll before enjoying her meal.

As she walked past a secluded park bench, she stopped suddenly as she heard a familiar voice. Looking in the direction of the sound, she was surprised to see Booth sitting there. Thinking he had arrived early, she started walking toward the bench until she realized he wasn't alone.

Sitting on the bench next to Booth was a young, very attractive blonde woman whom Brennan had never seen before. The woman giggled softly as she brushed her hair off her shoulder and smiled coquettishly at Booth, who naturally seemed to be enjoying the attention the young woman was giving him. They seemed to be sharing some sort of joke between them as they leaned toward each other, laughing and talking animatedly.

Brennan hesitated, trying to decide what to do. On one hand, she trusted Booth completely, knowing that he loved her and was faithful to her. On the other hand, it seemed to be somewhat suspicious for her husband to have this sort of apparently secret meeting with such an attractive young woman. Brennan finally shook off her suspicious thoughts as she walked toward the bench where she was supposed to meet Booth. For all she knew the woman was a new FBI agent that Booth was supposed to mentor. Still, it was a surprise that he hadn't mentioned it...

Trying not to let her doubts get the best of her, Brennan patiently waited on the appointed park bench for her husband, who joined her a few minutes later than they had originally planned. Booth seemed slightly breathless, apologizing for his tardiness by saying he'd been detained at work. She waited for him to mention his previous companion, but he said nothing about talking to the young woman before he met his wife. Because she didn't want him to think she was spying on him, Brennan chose not to mention that she had seen him in another part of the park. Surely he'd tell her about it if it was important. Brennan decided not to worry about the situation, knowing there must be a logical explanation. The woman was probably just an old friend, or perhaps the wife or girlfriend of an old Army buddy. She knew there really was nothing to be concerned about…

But try as she might over the next week or two, Brennan couldn't get away from her nagging doubts. She scolded herself as she tried to think through the situation rationally. Booth was a loving husband and an exceptional father. He'd never given her reason to doubt him once they had committed themselves to a monogamous relationship. She knew he loved her deeply in spite of any flaws she might have. Logically, it was ridiculous to think that he was seeing another woman in any sort of romantic relationship. Of course, it didn't help matters that the woman she'd seen him with was a beautiful blonde like many of his previous girlfriends, and it didn't help matters that he'd never mentioned anything about the meeting with this woman to his wife. Brennan sighed as she looked into the full length mirror, running her hands down her hips. Maybe Booth was disappointed in her appearance since Hank's birth. She wasn't the youthful woman with the slender figure he'd met all those years ago...maybe he regretted marrying her...

Annoyed with herself for being distrustful of her husband, Brennan finally decided to simply ask Booth about the woman he'd met in the park. Communication was the key to a good relationship, and she was certain that this was all a simple misunderstanding. She resolved to discuss the irritating little issue with him after dinner that evening.

Oooooooooo

The dinner dishes were done, the children were in bed, and now it was time for Brennan and Booth to spend a few quiet hours reconnecting after their hectic day at work. They found themselves in their usual spot, curled up together on the sofa, enjoying their closeness as they sipped their drinks. Sometimes they didn't even need to talk...they could just sit quietly together, and that would be enough. This evening, however, Booth seemed slightly nervous, causing Brennan some disquiet. She sat expectantly next to him, wondering what had made him uncomfortable.

"So, Bones, our anniversary is coming up soon…" he began. "...and I wanted to get you something really special…"

"That's not necessary, Booth. I don't need a gift to commemorate our wedding…"

"Yeah, well...I think it is necessary. I was thinking about what a lucky guy I am, you know? I'm the luckiest guy in the world, and it's all because of you, so I wanted to get you something really special that tells you how I feel about you." He produced a small jewelry box from his pocket. "I hope you like it. I'm kinda nervous about it, because I had it made especially for you..." He kissed Brennan gently and then handed her the box. "Happy Anniversary, Bones. I know it's not our anniversary yet, but I couldn't wait any longer..."

She smiled happily as she opened the box. Inside was a small glittering pendant on a fine gold chain. It was a flat golden circle inlaid with five small gemstones in different colors spaced at intervals around the curved surface. "Booth...it's beautiful…"

He grinned as he explained the significance of the design. "It's kind of like one of those mother's rings, but I like this design better. The circle stands for our family, and each one of the stones stands for one of us...those are our birthstones. See, there's you, me, Parker, Christine, and Hank." He winked at Brennan. "The woman who helped me design it said that we could leave room in case we had more kids...there's plenty of space to add more birthstones if we ever do have more kids…"

Brennan chuckled softly as she tried on her new necklace. "I don't think we'll have to worry about that, Booth, but I'm glad you planned ahead. Did you really design this necklace?"

"Well, I had some help. That's why I was late meeting you for lunch the other day. I'd met with the designer at the park before you got there. She works out of her home instead of a shop, so she wanted to meet me in a public place."

Smiling, Brennan nodded as she touched the necklace laying at the base of her neck. "Let me guess...she's a young, very attractive blonde woman..."

"How did you know that?" Booth looked at Brennan in surprise. "Oh, I get it." He grimaced slightly as he continued. "You saw us there together in the park. Is that why you've been feeling blue the last week or two? C'mon, Bones...you should know better…"

"I know." She shrugged her shoulders as she gave him a bashful grin. "I know you love me, but I've been feeling a bit uncomfortable with my appearance since I haven't been able to lose all the weight I gained before Hank was born, and she is a very attractive young woman…"

"Yes, she is." Seeing Brennan's shock at his statement, Booth laughed. "What? You're right. She is very attractive, but I wasn't the least bit tempted, because I knew I'd get to come home to the most beautiful woman in the world. There isn't woman in the world who can hold a candle to you, Bones…"

"You're just saying that because it's expected…" Brennan pouted a little bit as she leaned against Booth and embraced him. "You're my husband, and you're supposed to think that way…"

"I'm your husband _because_ I _get_ to think that way. Remember what I said? I'm the luckiest man in the world, and I'm so blessed to have you in my life." Booth kissed her gently and then touched her necklace with his index finger. "Now, tell me the truth. Do you really like this pendant?"

"Yes...I love the symbolism behind it, and I love the idea that you helped design it. It's a one of a kind, just like you…" She reached up to get another kiss. "Thank you, Booth."

"You're welcome, Bones." A grin spread across his face as he twitched his eyebrows at his wife. "So, what d'ya say? Maybe we should go work on adding another stone to that necklace, right?"


	15. Chapter 15 At the Playground

Booth checked his supplies one more time before he pulled the SUV away from the house on a warm, sunny Saturday afternoon. Christine and Hank were both strapped safely into their car seats. Hank's diaper bag sat next to Booth on the front seat. Looking through it once again, Booth nodded as he went through his mental checklist. _Diapers, wipes, extra sets of clothes for both kids, snacks, juice boxes for Christine, sippy cups for Hank, bottled water, sunscreen, hats for both kids, Hank's shovel and pail._ It looked like he was all set and ready to go. He smiled to himself as he put the SUV in reverse and backed out into the street. It was amazing to think that this much stuff was needed just to take two little kids to the neighborhood playground. He'd been on maneuvers in the world's harshest deserts with far fewer supplies. However, he knew that his wife had packed the bag for every contingency, and she considered everything in the bag to be an essential item.

He'd agreed to take the kids to the playground so she could have a few hours of quiet at home, allowing her to work on the outline for her next novel. He rolled his eyes as he sat at the stoplight. How hard could it possibly be to take two little kids to the playground? He'd taken both of his kids lots of places by himself. He was no stranger to this sort of adventure, but his wife had fretted over the idea ever since he'd first suggested it. He knew the kids would have a lot of fun playing in the sandbox or running around the jungle gyms and monkey bars, and then they'd come home tired, ready for supper, and then, hopefully, they'd go to bed early and Booth would be rewarded for being such a good father with some extra time for romance with his wife. Glancing in the rearview mirror, he arched his eyebrow at himself. So what if he had an ulterior motive for offering to take his kids off of his wife's hands for awhile? Nobody had to be the wiser, and his wife would certainly be appreciative of his altruism…

Booth pulled the SUV into the parking lot of the playground and found a parking slot. He grabbed the diaper bag and got the two children out of their car seats before taking a folding chair out of the back of the car. Balancing Hank on his hip, Booth smiled at his daughter. "Okay, Christine, listen. You need to stay in this area." He pointed in the general direction of the swings and playset. "Me and Hank are gonna sit over there in the shade and watch you. I'm gonna let Hank play in the sandbox. You need to stay where I can see you, okay?"

Christine nodded enthusiastically and ran away to play on the swings. Booth shifted Hank on his hip slightly, throwing the diaper bag over his shoulder and picking up the folding chair. "Okay, Tiger...let's you and me go find a place where you can play and I can watch Sissy on the swings." Finally finding a nice shady spot by the sandbox, Booth set Hank down to play with his pail and shovel in the sand until he could get the folding chair situated. Pulling out a bottle of water, Booth relaxed a bit, happily watching as his children had fun playing with the other kids. _Piece of cake,_ he thought to himself. _Maybe I should do this more often. We always have a good time when we come here...pretty soon Hank is gonna big enough to ride the carousel…that'll be fun, too…the kids are getting so big...gotta cherish the moments..._ Booth had started to daydream a bit about his kids riding the carousel when his reverie was interrupted by a lilting feminine voice.

"Hi! Come here often?" A very attractive woman in her thirties smiled at Booth, batting her eyelashes at him as she sat down next to him, perching on the ledge of the sandbox. She hitched up her shorts a bit as she stretched out her long legs. "I don't think I've seen you at this playground before…" She flicked her long black ponytail over her shoulder as she adjusted her bra strap and licked her lips. "I'd remember someone who looks as good as you do in those shorts and that tee shirt."

Somewhat taken aback by the woman's obvious flirting, Booth stammered, "Well, yeah...it's close to my house…you know, the kids like it..."

"We don't get a lot of single dads here." Extending her hand, the woman flashed a brilliant smile. "I'm Suzy. That's my boy, Cody, over there…" She pointed to a boy who was throwing rocks at some small birds. "It's hard to raise a child alone." Suzy sighed as she folded her arms under her breasts, pushing them up to emphasize the cleavage that was showing above the low neckline of her snug tee shirt. "But, of course, you know that…"

"Yeah, I've heard that…hey, your boy is throwing rocks at my little girl." Pointing at the boy, Booth stood up and raised his voice so he could be heard over the sounds of the children playing. "Hey, Cody...stop that. It's not nice to throw rocks at birds or at people." Grimacing as he realized he'd yelled at someone else's child, Booth turned and shrugged apologetically at Suzy. "Sorry. I guess I kind of overstepped my boundaries there, yelling at your kid like that, but I was afraid he'd hurt somebody with those rocks."

"Oh, that's okay. He never listens to me anyway. I'm glad to have a man like you help me with his bad behavior. His father is no help at all." Suzy smiled coyly, flashing a dimple. "Cody must like your daughter if he's throwing rocks at her. Maybe we could arrange some playdates for them so they could spend some time together. I'd like that…"

"Um, I don't know...I'm not sure we can work that out. Excuse me just a minute." Christine came running up to Booth, wiping tears from her eyes. He hunkered down so he was at eye level with her. "What's the matter, Sweetheart? Why are you crying? Aren't you having fun?"

"See that boy over there?" Christine pointed at Cody, who stuck his tongue out at her. "He tried to push me off the ladder while I was climbing up to go down the slide, and then he tried to push me off the swing I was sitting on. He threw rocks at the birds, too, and he hit one, Daddy. I think he killed it because it's just laying there funny. I don't want to play at this playground any more, because the kids here are mean…"

Glancing up at Suzy, who seemed totally unconcerned with her son's behavior, Booth puffed out a sigh. "It's okay, Christine. I don't think all the kids at this playground are mean, but we can leave if you want. Maybe next time we come to the playground the mean kids will stay home." Booth folded up the chair, grabbed the diaper bag, and dusted off Hank's sand covered clothes before balancing the baby on his hip. "I'm gonna have to say 'no' to the playdates, Suzy. I think maybe Cody needs some lessons on how to behave appropriately when he plays with other kids, but I'm not gonna be the one who teaches those lessons to him. I don't have the patience for it, and, anyway, I don't think my wife would approve. C'mon, Christine…let's go get some ice cream and leave the mean kids alone."

Oooooooooo

"There you are." Brennan was sitting at the kitchen counter enjoying a cup of tea has her family came into the kitchen after their afternoon jaunt. "Did you have fun at the playground, Christine?"

"I did for a while until this mean boy Cody started throwing rocks at me. I decided I didn't want to play there if the kids were mean." Christine gave her mother a hug before she continued recounting their adventures. "I think Daddy had fun, though. He made a new friend…"

"He did? Really?" Brennan arched her eyebrow at her husband as he changed Hank's diaper. "What is this new friend's name?"

Christine shrugged as she got herself a glass of water. "I'm not sure. She's Cody's mom. She smiled at Daddy a lot. I think she wants Daddy to bring me to the playground again so she can talk some more to him, right, Daddy?"

"Um, yeah...I guess so." Booth blushed slightly as he saw the amused look on his wife's face. "Suzy...I mean, Cody's mom...she suggested that we have some playdates so Cody and Christine could play together, but I told her I wasn't...I mean, that we weren't interested. She thought I was a single dad, but I told her I was married. She was just on the prowl, you know, looking for a prospective mate. Her son is a handful, too. I bet she has a hard time finding a guy who'd be willing to deal with him."

"Daddy? What does 'on the prowl' mean?" Christine tilted her head as she thought about his comment, obviously confused.

Surprised by his daughter's question, Booth bit his lip to keep from laughing out loud. "It means she really, really wants to be friends with your Daddy. Hey, tell Mommy what else we did…" Anxious to change the subject, Booth bounced Hank around, making the baby laugh. "Where did we go after we left the playground?"

Christine grinned as she remembered. "We went to have ice cream, and then we went to the library. Guess what, Mommy? I checked out five books, and Daddy checked out some books, too. We're going to take turns reading to each other and to Hank."

Brennan smiled as she hugged Christine. "That sounds like fun. Please go put your library books in your bedroom for now. Perhaps you can read to me after dinner."

"Okay." Christine skipped off to her bedroom carrying her books.

Booth put Hank in his playpen and turned to embrace Brennan. "Were you able to get some work done on your outline?"

"Yes, I actually got much further than I thought I would. Your plan worked out well, even if the single moms were hitting on you at the playground." Brennan smiled as she gave her husband a kiss. "I'm not sure I should let you out of my sight with all of those predators on the prowl. You might forget to come home..."

"Aw, c'mon, Bones." Booth chuckled as he shook his head. "So an attractive woman strikes up a conversation with me at the playground. That doesn't mean I'm gonna run away with her...not when I have you here at home."

"That was the correct thing to say, Booth, but I think perhaps I'll accompany you to the playground next time so I can chase Suzy away from you. Perhaps I need to be more vigilant in guarding my territory against the incursions of predatory females." Brennan giggled as Booth pulled her closer.

"I tell you what...let's not worry about Suzy any more. She can get her own playmate." Booth lowered his voice to a sultry whisper. "I want to talk about the games we're gonna play this evening after the kids are in bed. I'm looking forward to making our bedroom my own personal playground this evening."

Brennan smirked as she gave him another kiss before going to check on Christine. "Tag...you're it…"


	16. Chapter 16 At a Public Pool

_A/N: set about 8 years in the future..._

Booth sat at the kitchen counter early one Saturday afternoon, eating a sandwich for lunch as he looked over the sports page. He muttered to himself about the Phillies losing to the Cubs. "Again? What's this world coming to? The Cubs can't be that good... _"_

As he turned to the next page he heard Brennan's car pull into the garage. A few minutes later she came into the kitchen carrying an armload of grocery bags. "Hiya, Bones. Need some help? Are there any more bags in the car?"

She shook her head and smiled as she set the bags on the counter. "No, this is all of them. I just needed a few things so I stopped at the store after dropping the children off at their respective locations this morning."

Looking at the large pile of bags, Booth grimaced slightly. "This is just a few things? Wow…" He began putting the various boxes and cans in the pantry. "So what are Hank and Christine doing today?"

Brennan closed the refrigerator door and leaned against it. "Let's see...Hank went over to Jimmy's house. Jimmy's birthday was yesterday, and his mother is hosting a sleepover for some of his friends this evening. I guess they're going to spend the day doing whatever eight-year-old boys usually do..."

"Which means eating, getting dirty, and being loud." Booth chuckled as he grabbed an apple from a bag before putting the rest of them in the basket on the counter. He took a knife from drawer and sat down as he began to slice his apple. "What about Christine?"

"I dropped Christine, Jennifer, and Marilee off at the pool over in Niehuis Park. They're going to meet some friends there…" Brennan folded her cloth shopping bags and put them in the bottom of the pantry. "Jennifer's mother will pick them up and bring Christine home later this afternoon."

"Why are they going to a public pool? Why don't they just go over to swim at Michael-Vincent's house?" Booth cut a slice from his apple. "It seems like it would be more enjoyable to swim over there. There wouldn't be nearly as many people running around acting silly." Seeing his wife's smirk, Booth nodded in understanding. "So when you said they were meeting some friends, you meant some boys, right?"

"Yes. Jennifer's boyfriend Kevin and Marilee's boyfriend Seth were going to meet them there." Brennan began making herself a salad, hoping to avoid the next question, since she knew Booth would not be pleased with the answer, but ask it he did. After all, he was a Special Agent in Charge and uncomfortable interrogations were his specialty.

"Wait...what about Christine? Isn't Michael-Vincent going to meet them there?"

Brennan shook her head. "Michael-Vincent and Christine are no longer a couple. She said she 'broke up' with him because he was acting 'too weird'. I'm not sure what that means, but it seemed to make perfect sense to her…"

Booth shrugged as he cut another slice from his apple. "Well, Bones, most teenage girls change their minds a lot about who they want to have for their boyfriends. They're notoriously fickle. I think Michael-Vincent may have been jealous of some of Christine's other male friends, and she decided that she wanted to keep those friends instead of being his girlfriend, so she broke up with him. It happens all the time with teenagers. Who knows? Next week they could be back together again."

"I'm not so sure about that, Booth." Brennan was surprised that he took the news of Christine's breakup so calmly. She wondered how he'd feel about the next bit of news. "Christine already has a new boyfriend. That's why they went to the public pool. His name is Lyle McDonald, and he's working as a lifeguard there."

"Jesus...who names their son Lyle?" Booth shook his head at the strange names people gave to their kids. "So has Christine told you anything about him?"

Brennan got up to rinse her plate in the sink. "They had geometry class together at school last year. I guess he borrowed her notes and forgot to give them back to her before school was out, so he called her and wanted to know if she still needed them. Christine said they talked about 'everything' for 'hours', and that Lyle agrees with her about 'all the important stuff'." Brennan made air quotes as she rolled her eyes. "She says he's very cute, tall, and quite athletic. His mother is a priest on the staff of the National Cathedral, and his father is the director of a local food pantry serving the poor..."

"Wait a minute…" Booth interrupted his wife. "If Lyle is a lifeguard at a public pool, he must be over fifteen...how much older is he than Christine?"

Avoiding her husband's glare, Brennan put her plate in the dishwasher. "He's seventeen. Remember, geometry is the advanced mathematics class, so Christine was in class with several students who were older than she was at the time…"

"So he's two years older than our daughter and he's a preacher's kid...not good, Bones...not good at all." Booth picked up the leftovers from his apple and put them in the countertop composter. "I mean, I could sorta handle Michael-Vincent being Christine's boyfriend because I know him and his parents, but this Lyle kid could be a real troublemaker."

Grimacing, Brennan tilted her head, glaring at her husband as she threw up her hands in frustration. "I fail to see the correlation between any inappropriate behavior on Lyle's part and the fact that one of his parents is a clergyperson…"

"Preacher's kids are always wild, Bones. Everybody knows that. They've gotta toe the line at home and at church so they go crazy everywhere else." Booth heaved an exasperated sigh. "I'm gonna need to meet this boy to make sure he's okay for Christine to date. Maybe I should drive over to the pool and pick Christine up myself. That way I can check this kid out…"

Brennan stood with her hands on her hips as she lectured her husband. "It seems to me that you're making a broad generalization about Lyle's supposedly bad behavior based on gossip, urban legends and unfounded 'words of wisdom' that you've heard in the past rather than on the present facts. You haven't met Lyle and you've already decided he's not good enough to be Christine's boyfriend. You know jumping to conclusions like that is not good investigative or scientific practice." She held up her hand to interrupt Booth's sputtering protest. "There's no reason to embarrass Christine by making a scene at the pool. She knows how to behave herself in public." Brennan reached across the counter and patted her husband's hand gently in an effort to calm him. Smiling sweetly, she ran her finger across the back of his hand as she continued. "Anyway, if what you say about teenage girls being extremely fickle is true, Christine and Lyle may not be a couple very long. Let's give their relationship a couple of weeks and see what happens. Perhaps after that time period, if they're still interested in each other, we can call Lyle's parents and arrange to meet them and their son for dinner somewhere. That way we can meet the whole family in a less threatening manner."

"I guess you're right, Bones." Booth slumped in his stool and ran his hands across his face. "God, how am I gonna handle all of this shit while Christine grows up? Christine is only fifteen, and she already wants to start dating. What's it gonna be like when she can drive? I'm gonna go crazy…"

Brennan walked around the counter to give Booth a comforting embrace. "You know, it's hard on both of us now that she's growing up so fast. The good news is that we've given her a solid moral foundation, and she knows that we're both going to be thoroughly engaged in parenting her, and that we'll present a united front against any issue that might come our way. We have to trust that we've done a satisfactory job of raising her, and then we have to let her prove to us that she can handle the privileges she's earned, or she'll lose those privileges."

Booth grinned at his wife as he reached up to push a strand of hair behind her ear. "How'd you get to be so smart? Wait, I know...you're a genius..." He reached out to embrace his wife. "...and you're right. We do need to trust that we've raised Christine the right way." He rose from the stool and gave his wife a quick kiss. "I think I'm gonna go work on the Mustang for a little while."

Sighing softly as she watched Booth walk out to the garage, Brennan shook her head. Booth didn't know how he was going to handle Christine's teenage years without going crazy, and Brennan didn't know how she was going to handle Booth's craziness over Christine's teenage years without going crazy herself...


	17. Chapter 17 Summer School

_A/N: set between season 2 and season 3_

"Hiya, Bones. Whad'ya doin?" Booth leaned against the door frame of Brennan's office. "You look really busy."

"Hmm?" Brennan looked up from her computer. "Oh, hello, Booth. I'm just working on an article for an anthropology journal. Do we have a new case?"

"Nah...I just came by to see if you wanted to go to lunch with me at the diner…" Booth sauntered in and sat down on Brennan's office sofa. "But if you're too busy…" He gazed at Brennan with his warm brown sad puppy eyes as he pretended to pout. "I guess I'll just go to lunch by myself, even though it's not as much fun as going with someone else. I'll just have to be brave…" He heaved a very large artificial sigh.

Rolling her eyes as she pulled a slight grimace, Brennan pushed her chair away from her desk, knowing she was fighting a losing battle as she tried to resist Booth's boyish charm. "Alright, Booth. I'll go to lunch with you, but I can't be gone all afternoon. I have a deadline to meet for this article." As she rose quickly from her chair with her purse in hand, a paper fluttered off her desk, and Booth bent over to retrieve it for her. He glanced at it before setting it gingerly on Brennan's desk. Brennan primly folded the letter and put it in her desk drawer. "I was going to talk to you about this later…"

"That letter's from the University of Copenhagen...in Denmark, right?" Booth rubbed his hand across his chin nervously. "Sorry...I really didn't mean to read your mail. I guess it's none of my business anyway. Ready to go?" He rose from the sofa and moved toward the door, gesturing for Bones to leave ahead of him.

"Yes, Copenhagen is in Denmark." Brennan shrugged on her jacket as she left her office. "I received a letter from Sven Larsen, the chair of the anthropology department there. We're old friends from our time together at Northwestern. He wants me to teach some graduate classes this summer in forensic anthropology at the university."

"In Denmark? Do they even have summer in Denmark?" Slightly annoyed, Booth narrowed his eyes as he glanced at Brennan. "Aren't there any universities in the DC area offering summer school classes that you could teach? I don't see why you'd have to go all the way to Denmark to teach summer school. I can't imagine too many college kids are lining up to take a graduate course in anthropology during summer school, anyway, but I guess you'd know more about that than me."

Now Brennan was annoyed. "Copenhagen is a beautiful city, especially in the summer when the days are so long. I could teach there during the week and go to other places throughout Scandinavia on the weekends." Clenching her jaw, Brennan stuck out her chin defiantly. "I'll have you know that Sven said he knew of several students who were really excited about the prospect of taking the class that I would be teaching this summer. He said I might be able to teach three or four sections if I wanted, and he's hinting about me staying past the summer and teaching during the fall semester as well."

Booth began muttering to himself as he unlocked the doors of the SUV. "Somehow I think it's not the prospect of Bones being a teacher that has Sven so eager for her to come to Denmark. I think that joker has other prospects in mind...", he said under his breath. "...and all of those prospects have to do with getting Bones in bed with him…"

After Booth and Brennan arrived at the diner and sat at their usual table, they both ordered their usual meals, talking about a variety of topics as they waited for their orders to be brought to them. Finally Booth couldn't resist asking the question that had been bothering him on the ride over to the diner. "So, you and Sven...were you two an item in college?"

"Sven wanted us to be an item when we were at college together, but I was too busy studying to have time for a boyfriend. He is very attractive...a typical tall, blonde, well-structured Danish man, but _if_ I took the summer school position, starting a new relationship with Sven wouldn't be the reason why I would do so. I enjoy teaching, and since Zack has enlisted in the Army…" Brennan hesitated as she tried to maintain her composure. "...it's not like I have a lot to keep me here in the States over the summer. My dad and Russ are off doing who knows what sort of illegal endeavors, and Angela is busy trying to help Hodgins find her real husband so she can get a divorce and they can marry." Brennan gave Booth a sideways glance, trying to gauge his reaction to her statement. "I'm sure you'd have no difficulty finding another partner on a temporary basis…"

"Yeah." Booth suddenly realized he had no appetite for the hamburger that was sitting on the plate in front of him. "Well…", he sighed, as he pushed his plate away, "...I guess it's up to you to decide what you want to do. If you decide to go to Denmark, how long do you think you'd be gone?"

"If I just teach summer school, it would be about ten weeks. If I teach the fall semester as well, it would be approximately six months. It's not like I'll be gone forever…"

 _You might as well be,"_ he grumbled to himself. "You're right...sounds like a good deal, especially if you miss teaching." Booth paused as he glanced at his watch. "Jesus, look at the time...I'd better get you back to the lab. We don't want to keep the forensic journal guys waiting, now do we?"

Surprised that Booth wasn't putting up more of an argument about her possible summer semester in Denmark, Brennan shrugged as she rose from the table. "I guess you're right. Maybe it would be a good idea to go to Denmark. I'll let you know very soon what I decide, Booth, so you can make arrangements for a partner. I imagine Dr. Edison would be quite useful…" She listed all of Clark's qualifications as they drove back to the Jeffersonian.

"Okay, maybe I'll talk to Clark. Let me know what you decide, Bones…" Booth pulled the SUV up to the curb to let Brennan out of the car. "Talk to you soon…"

"Goodbye." Brennan watched Booth as he steered the car out into the heavy traffic. He hadn't put up a fight about her quitting their partnership for six months, and he seemed to wish her the best with whatever she chose. She knew she should be happy that the discussion went so smoothly, but instead she felt awash with disappointment. Maybe she'd misunderstood what Booth was thinking about her…he seemed fond of her, but she knew she didn't always read people very well. As she walked up the steps to the Jeffersonian lab, she sighed, wondering if she'd made the correct choice...

Oooooooooo

Booth tried hard to concentrate on his case files when he got back to his office, but he was having no luck. His mind kept wandering back to his lunch conversation with Bones. Even if she was only gone for the summer school session, that would still be ten weeks without his partner, and that was ten weeks too long for his liking. And then what if that jackass Sven convinced her to stay longer? Shaking his head, Booth stared out the window of his office. He'd already risked losing Bones once this year when Sully had asked her to sail off to the Caribbean, and Booth desperately wanted to avoid a repeat of that situation. This time she acted like she was even more interested in leaving, probably because this trip involved doing something more useful than what Sully had offered. Booth knew he had to do something to make his partner understand how much he wanted her to stay, but first he had to answer two questions for himself. First, how could he get her to stay without making her angry, and, second, why did he care so much if she left? She was just his partner, right? No...that wasn't right. He knew he'd begun to care for Brennan more than he really wanted to, but that wasn't the point now. Now he had to convince her to stay…

Grabbing his jacket and phone, Booth strode out of his office and down to the parking garage before he could change his mind. He'd just ask Bones to stay...maybe that was all he needed to do. He wasn't sure, but he knew what would happen if he did nothing, and he couldn't stand the thought of Bones leaving for Denmark…

Oooooooooo

"Listen, Bones…" Booth began as he walked into her office. "I'm not sure this idea about you going to Denmark is gonna work."

"What?" Brennan looked at Booth in surprise as she turned from her computer. "Why not? Earlier today you said it was a good idea…"

"Yeah, well...I changed my mind. We've got a lot of cases going to court soon, and some of the trials may be really long…"

"Clark can handle those cases just as well as I can. I can make arrangements with Cam for someone else from the lab to work with my interns…"

Booth stared at his shoes sheepishly. "Okay...I guess so...except you're forgetting something."

Brennan ran through the list in her mind one more time. "I don't think so...you know I tend to be a detail oriented person…"

"Well, you missed one small detail. You forgot about how much I'd miss you if you were gone for so long. I'd be unhappy, and I wouldn't be able to do my best work, so our conviction rate might be in jeopardy. Clark and I might let a murderer go free all because you weren't here to supervise. You wouldn't want that, would you? " He took a little peek to see if he was making her feel even a little bit guilty. "Besides, there's another reason...a personal one." He inhaled deeply before he continued. "I don't want you to go. Would you please at least think about it a bit longer? And if you decide to go, can you make it just for the summer? Six months without you as my partner is too long…I know it seems like I'm being selfish, but think about how much the crime rate's gonna rise if you're not here to help me..."

Tilting her head slightly to the side, Brennan looked at Booth with wonderment. "You don't want me to go?" She grinned as she turned back to her computer. "Well, that's good, because I just emailed Sven to tell him that I couldn't do a whole summer semester. I've offered to teach three one week seminars that are spaced evenly through June. That way I'll only be gone a month." Brennan grinned as she typed furiously. "Maybe you can get a week off and come to visit me Copenhagen while I'm there…"

"Wow...yeah. I'd like to do that. I've always wanted to go there…" Booth smiled as he warmed up to the idea. "Only a month? I think we can work that out…"

"Is there anything else we need to discuss right now, Booth? If not, I need to get back to editing my article…"

"No...that's great. Hey, would you email me the dates so I can see if I can get some time off? I mean, it may just be for a few days…"

"But I know you'd enjoy it. Alright, I'll send you the dates. I'm glad we had this little chat, Booth…"

"Yeah, I am, too. Oh, hey...I gotta go pick up Parker. I'll see you tomorrow." Booth laughed as he turned to leave. "A week in Denmark...wow…"

Brennan chuckled as she watched Booth leave. It seemed that Angela was correct. Telling Booth she could be gone six months certainly had softened his stance on her being gone a month. Normally, she didn't like to employ feminine wiles or bending the truth, but she could see how they were useful tools. And, as Angela had said, there was no reason to tell Booth that Brennan had decided several weeks ago to go to Denmark for a month. She typed happily as she thought about spending a week with Booth in a beautiful city like Copenhagen. Perhaps she needed to do more investigation into what Angela called the "Battle of the Sexes". Brennan decided she might want to participate in that battle more frequently...as long as she was battling with Booth...


	18. Chapter 18 Vacation

It was eight o'clock on a Tuesday morning. Sunlight was streaming through the bedroom windows as Brennan yawned and stretched, feeling rested from a good night's sleep. Smiling to herself, she turned so she could stroke her husband's well muscled back as he lay on his side. "Booth?"

"Hmmm?" He groaned softly as he shifted in his sleep.

"Booth, are you awake?" Brennan's fingers began to slowly knead his shoulder and back muscles. "I think it's time to get up…"

"Don' wanna…", he mumbled. "Go away. I'm on vacation…"

"I think this idea that you had for our vacation this year is very interesting. So far it's worked out well…"

"I'm sleeping, Bones…" He grumbled as he plumped up his pillow. "That's part of what I wanted to do, remember? Sleep late?"

"Well, you have slept in late. Normally you get up at six on a work morning, so you've slept an extra two hours today…"

"Yeah, but you kept me up until the wee hours of the morning, remember?" Booth rolled over to face his wife. "Somebody wanted to play cowgirl several times last night, and this stallion is a little bit tired and sleepy…"

"That's too bad." Brennan grinned slyly as her hands worked down her husband's chest toward his hips. "I was hoping we could have another entertaining go-round at the rodeo this morning…"

Booth grinned as he brushed his wife's hair away from her face. "We might be able to arrange that." He chuckled softly, dodging her playful swat as he tickled her. "So you're enjoying our vacation, right? Do you like the way I've planned things for us to do?"

"Yes, much more than I thought I would. I do enjoy traveling, and I like to see different parts of the world, but staying at home has proven to be very relaxing and restful." She smiled as she lay back in the bed, looking up at the ceiling as Booth embraced her. "I find I'm enjoying myself a great deal."

"I'm glad someone's getting to rest around here." Booth leaned over to kiss Brennan. "It seems I'm the one who's getting a workout while I'm trying to keep you happy and satisfied…"

"True, but I imagine you'll be quite relaxed by the end of the week, correct? I'm sure I'll have to take a turn at satisfying you." Brennan giggled as Booth began to caress her breasts. "I'll be very relaxed as well. And we won't have to unpack our suitcases or do laundry when we get home, and we won't be exhausted from traveling…"

"We don't have to do any laundry because we may not wear any clothes this week, right? I guess I may let you get dressed long enough to go get some groceries if we need something." Booth laughed as Brennan pretended to glare at him. "Okay, maybe I could go to the store." He gave her another kiss. "Anyway, what day of the week is it?"

"It's Tuesday. Christine comes home from Brownie Camp on Saturday. Max will pick her up from Jennifer's house, and then bring both children home Sunday morning." Brennan ran her hands over Booth's arm muscles. "Everyone at work thinks we went out of town…"

"I know. That's great, isn't it? Nobody's gonna bother us…" Booth gave Brennan a dimpled grin. "It's a lot less expensive this way, and a lot less trouble. No traffic, no worries about the weather or how it might affect our flight, no long lines. Just me and my beautiful wife spending some quality time together all week long."

"Max said he'd call from time to time to let us know how Hank is doing…" Brennan winked at her husband. "I don't suppose you miss changing diapers, do you?"

"Not really. It is really nice of your dad to keep Hank for us this week…" Booth ran his finger along Brennan's clavicle. "I feel better knowing Hank's close by if there really is a problem."

"Booth, do you think we're bad parents because we wanted to spend some time by ourselves without Hank or Christine?" Brennan bit her lip as she considered the situation. "You know I love our children…"

"Of course I know that, Bones. It's not like we left our kids with strangers. You know Max loves his grandkids. Christine is having a great time at camp, and your dad offered to have Hank stay with him for a while so we can have some time just for us. He knows we need that since we have stressful jobs. But we can go get Hank anytime, if that's what you want…"

Brennan shrugged. "You're right. I know Max will take good care of Hank. Let's see how the week goes. Right now, however…" Brennan chuckled as she squeezed her husband's firm gluteus muscles. "Right now I think it's time for this cowgirl to take another ride on her stallion."

Booth laughed as he pulled Brennan over on top of him. "Whatever you say, ma'am. Giddyup! Yee haw!"


	19. Chapter 19 Beach Umbrella

_A/N: set about 3 or 4 years in the future..._

"Who knew it took so much stuff just to enjoy a day at the beach?" Booth heaved a frustrated sigh as he tried once again to load everything into the back of the SUV. He looked at large pile of supplies on the floor of the garage and tried to imagine where he was going to put everything. "Jesus...we might need to rent a trailer…" He took out the folding chairs and put the coolers into the truck, hoping the folding chairs could slide in on top of them. He decided the duffle bags containing the extra sets of clothes for the kids could go up in the seats on the floorboards. He jammed in the large canvas bag that held all of their towels, and then he let some of the air out of the swim rings, hoping they'd fit easier. Sand pails and shovels were stuck in a cranny on the side. Finally he threw in the life jackets everyone would need to wear when they rode the jet ski. He smiled to himself as he stroked the beautiful shiny machine as he hooked its trailer to the SUV's bumper. Riding that baby across the ocean waves was going to make packing the SUV all worthwhile. Glancing around the garage, he decided he had everything situated in the truck. It was time to load up the family.

Booth stood at the back door and yelled for his wife. "Bones! Chop Chop! Let's get this show on the road." Tapping his foot impatiently, he started barking orders like a drill sergeant. "Okay, kids, listen up. No hitting each other or teasing each other in the back seat, okay? Christine's gonna sit behind Mommy, Hank's gonna be in the middle, and Parker's gonna sit behind me. Let me see those sunglasses! Hats! Sandals! Sunscreen! Good job! Does everyone remember where they sit? Good. Let's saddle up. Bones? You comin' with us?"

"Where is the conflagration, Booth?" Brennan came bustling into the kitchen wearing her two piece bathing suit and a short cover up. "I wanted to make sure I wore the right swimsuit. Do I look alright?"

Booth cast an appreciative glance at his wife and nodded. "You look great, but we're burning daylight. We need to get on the road...what's so funny?" Booth looked at his wife as if she'd lost her mind. "Bones?"

"You made a joke!", she giggled. "I said conflagration, which means fire, and you said we're burning daylight, which is silly anyway, because light can burn things but it can't be burned…"

"Okay, right. Haha. Let's get in the car." Booth took Brennan's hand and hurriedly led her out to the garage. "Okay...everybody's been to the bathroom, right? Everybody's buckled up, right? Let's ride." Booth put the truck in reverse and started to back the truck and the trailer out of the driveway onto the street.

"Booth, wait!" Brennan put her hand on her husband's arm. "Did you get the umbrella?"

"The what?" Booth looked at her quizzically. "I loaded up everything that was in the pile of stuff you had out in the garage…"

"But remember? I specifically asked you to make sure you packed the umbrella. Hank, Christine and I need to protect our skin from sunburn." She pursed her lips as she saw his grimace. "You're not sure you packed it, are you?"

"Not really. Does this mean I have to unpack all of the stuff in the back of the SUV? Can't we just rent one at the beach?" Booth was clearly exasperated with his wife. "You should've put it with the rest of the stuff…"

"We don't need to rent one if we have a perfectly good one in the garage. I thought if I reminded you, you'd know I needed it. Here, let me out…" Brennan opened the car door. "I know right where it is…" She quickly got out of the truck and raced into the garage, returning with a slender blue and green striped bag which she threw into the rear of the SUV. "Okay...let's get a move on, Booth…."

Oooooooooo

At last the family arrived at the beach. They unloaded the back of the SUV and carried everything down to a level spot on the shore overlooking the ocean. After getting the coolers and chairs arranged, it was time to set up the beach umbrella.

"Okay...let's see how this works…" Booth took the umbrella out of the bag and unfolded it. "This is kinda big…" Glancing at his wife, he rolled his eyes. "It's not a regular umbrella, is it?"

"No, it makes a little shelter. See? You open the sides like this…" She demonstrated as she spoke. "We stake the sides down and open the top, propping it up with this pole…" As she opened the umbrella, a gust of wind caught the umbrella and carried it several yards down the beach. Chasing it down, Booth finally caught it and dragged it back to their spot.

"I'm not sure this is a good idea, Bones.", he panted as he narrowed his eyes at his laughing children. He pouted a bit as he began to whine loudly. "Can't we skip this part? I want to use the jet ski while I'm here…"

"It'll only take a few minutes, Booth…" Brennan glared at her husband as she opened the windows on the side of the shelter. After bending down to stake the sides again, she stood up and brushed the sand from her hands. "There. That only took five minutes. You may now go play with your jet ski." She spread her towel out under the small shelter and sat down, applying sunscreen to her arms. "After the children have put on sunscreen and life jackets, you may drive them around as well."

"Great! Fine! That's just what we'll do. Stupid umbrella..." Booth grumbled as he stomped off to get his jet ski ready to go.

Christine watched her father quickly walk away as her mother rubbed sunscreen on her arms. "Is Daddy mad at you, Mommy?"

"No, he's just frustrated with the umbrella. He'll be fine in a little bit. Make sure you wear a hat when you play in the sun, okay? I don't want you to get sunburned." Brennan saw Booth waving from the water's edge. "Oh, look...I think your daddy is ready to take you for a ride. Let's put on your life jacket."

Oooooooooo

After taking his children on several turns on the jet ski, Booth pulled it up on the beach and walked up the slight hill to where Brennan was sitting under the umbrella. He plopped down on the towel next to her and gave her a charm smile. "So this umbrella turned out to be a pretty clever idea. I'm glad I thought of it."

Brennan puffed out an indignant gasp, ready to scold her husband soundly until she realized he was teasing her. "I'm glad I was able to help you set it up." She smiled as she watched the children playing in the waves as they lapped the shore. "This has been a very enjoyable day, hasn't it?"

Reaching over to put his arm around his wife, Booth twitched an eyebrow at her. "Yes, a very good day. You know…" He pulled her close and kissed her. "This shelter gives us a bit of privacy…"

"Booth!", Brennan giggled as she snuggled against him. "The children can still see us…"

"That's okay. Parker's old enough to keep them occupied if we want him to while we're otherwise engaged. But I don't think it matters. I'm glad the kids know that their parents are still affectionate with each other after all these years. Anyway, this is just a taste of what's gonna happen later this evening…" He kissed her and caressed her gently. "I'm sure the kids are gonna be tired from playing all day, and they'll want go to bed early, and then me and you can spend some quality time together..."

"That does sound like a pleasant way to spend the evening." Brennan leaned into Booth's arm, sighing contentedly as she listened to her children laughing while they splashed in the surf. "It was a good idea to come to the beach today, wasn't it, Booth?"

He smiled as he leaned over to kiss her again. "Yes, it was, Bones...yes, it was."


	20. Chapter 20 Beach Blanket

Brennan walked through the family room on her way to put clean towels in the bathroom when she paused to stand behind the sofa. "Booth, what on Earth are you watching?"

"Oh, hey, Bones." Seeming somewhat embarrassed at being caught doing something silly, Booth muted the sound on the television as he grinned at his wife. "The nostalgia television station is having a beach party movie marathon…" Seeing the doubtful look on his wife's face, he continued. "You know, Frankie and Annette? The sixties? The teenagers go to the beach with all of their friends and have various madcap adventures? This one's called _Beach Blanket Bingo…_ "

"There was a series of movies made about people going to the beach in the sixties? That doesn't sound very entertaining." Brennan sat down next to Booth and watched for a few minutes. "There doesn't seem to be much of a plot to this movie…"

"That's true." Booth shrugged in agreement as he took a drink of his beer. "All of these movies have the same basic plot revolving around two teenagers in love with each other and the whole boy meets girl, boy loses girl, boy gets girl back through a set of crazy circumstances kind of thing. That doesn't mean they're not fun to watch. In the sixties, every girl wanted to be Annette Funicello and every boy wanted to be Frankie Avalon. These movies all had great music, too, and excellent scenery."

"I can see that." Brennan smirked at her husband as some women in bikinis walked across the television screen. "If these movies came out in the sixties, Booth, how do you know about them? You weren't born until the seventies…"

"When I was a kid, they used to show movie reruns on Saturday evenings and Sunday afternoons. If there wasn't a ball game on, Pops liked to have a movie on the TV, even if he wasn't watching it. Since we only had one TV, if I wanted to watch something, I had to watch whatever Pops chose. He thought these movies were funny."

Booth and Brennan watched Frankie and Annette for a few more minutes before Brennan spoke again. "The people in this movie remind me very much of the tribe I studied that lived in the area of the United States called the Jersey Shore. You remember, Booth? The Guidos? It seems that tribe must've used the subculture represented in this movie as a basis for their own tribal ethos."

"What? Tribal ethos? What are you talking about Bones?" Booth shook his head as he chuckled. "It's just two different groups of teenage kids having fun at the beach. I mean, I guess the groups are separated by about thirty-five or forty years, and practically the whole continent, since Frankie and Annette were on the West Coast, and Snooki lives on the East Coast, but things don't change that much from one generation to another. Kids still do the same things at the beach…"

"That's exactly my point, Booth. The two cultures in question are remarkably similar. That can't be a coincidence." Brennan's brow furrowed as she thought over the situation. "I think it's likely that the parents of the members of the Guido tribe probably watched these beach party movies and then passed the information to their children as a paean of what a perfect life should be. Living on the beach has always been valued in developed countries like ours, which is why beachfront property is usually quite expensive. It's really quite a fascinating study in cultural anthropology."

"Oookay." Booth scratched the back of his neck and took another drink of his beer. "I'm not sure how we went from beach party movies to anthropological studies, Bones. These movies were mostly designed to be just carefree fun for the viewer." He held up his hand to interrupt Brennan's explanation. "It's alright, Bones. You don't have to explain it to me again." Booth turned the sound up on the television. "This is one of the good parts. See, they're all dancing the Watusi on the beach blankets…"

Brennan turned to smile at her husband. "I never realized you were so interested in cultural anthropology, Booth. You know, it might be interesting to compare movies from the thirties and forties to the beach party movies to see what teenagers what doing then…"

Shrugging, Booth thought about that for a few minutes. "If I remember correctly, a lot of the movies about teenagers from the thirties showed them getting ready to put on a show in someone's barn….Judy Garland and Mickey Rooney were a song and dance duo who did a lot of those movies. I don't guess going to the beach was something a lot of people did in the movies at that time...at least I can't remember many movies about that."

"Perhaps some research is in order." Brennan pointed at the television. "Oh, look...they're surfing on this movie. It seems that the Guidos never really adopted that custom, probably because the geology of the Atlantic Ocean basin doesn't allow for the same types of large waves as the Pacific Ocean basin…"

"I'm sure you're right about that, Bones." Booth rolled his eyes as he adjusted the television's sound once again. "Or it could be that the Guidos have better things to do, like going to dance clubs…"

"Even though there is a slight variation in their tribal customs, they have enough things in common for me to consider them to be separate offshoots of the same root culture. This is very similar to the differences that developed between England and the United States at the time leading up to the Declaration of Independence…"

Sighing, Booth turned off the television. "You know what? I think that's enough about movies for now. I'm gonna go work on the Mustang…"

"Oh. Okay." Brennan watched him walk into the kitchen to put his bottle in the recycling before he went out to the garage. Smiling to herself, she picked up the remote and turned the movie back on, nodding in satisfaction. "No wonder Annette seems so interested in Frankie. He appears to have exceptional facial symmetry and he's well muscled…I definitely need to do more research on these movies..."


End file.
